Bristol Classic 1997 Trinidad Caroni HTR 19-Year

If you are into Caroni, this is a very fairly priced bottle. The high alcohol percentage is felt and it feels like the rum is powerbombing your tastebuds. To me the only downside is that the rum has matured partly in Europe. So the 18 years don't give the rum the same heavy body as it would, had it stayed the full 18 years in the Caribbean.

Destilleret i 1997 - aftappet 2016. 61,5 %.
Stærk, men helt igennem fantastisk smag. Ekstrem lang og dejlig eftersmag.

Update 06.2021 -> tried version 1997 - 2017:
Smell: I mainly get leather notes, sweetness from burnt sugar, some vanilla and wood notes. We have more wood here. Some dried fruits can be smelled subtle in the background. Some barrel aromas are deeper in the glass.
Still a good Caroni smell, not very dirty but more woody or heavy I would say.

Taste: Dirty start with a composition of tar, gum, dried fruit and some bitter substances. These aromas transform into leather notes with some tannins. The aging influence. In the middle the spiciness increases and the rum releases some vanilla with wood. In the finish, is leather and tannins are still noticeable.

Aftertaste: leather notes, bitter substances, dried fruit

This rum seems to be a little bit darker and slightly more woody. Still the same aromas overall.
Can't choose a winner, they are both good. Would choose the same rating points.

1997 - 2015 Version.
When bottling this Caroni, John Barrett jumped on the Velier train and bottled it at cask strength. The rum was matured in bourbon barrels and has not received a special finish. So we can look forward to Bourbon wood. The rum is 18 years old and was partly tropical and continental matured.

Smell: The smell is neither very intense and dirty, nor is it fruity. I mainly get leather notes, sweetness from burnt sugar, some vanilla and some wood notes. Some dried fruits can be smelled subtle in the background, but no black currant, which I miss. Some greasy barrel aromas are deeper in the glass.
A beautiful and almost mild caroni smell that lives heavily on leather notes.

Taste: Dirty start with a composition of tar, gum, dried fruit and some bitter substances. These aromas transform into leather notes with orange zest as the rum becomes warm in the mouth. In the middle the spiciness increases and the rum releases some vanilla with wood. In the finish, dry orange peel, leather and tannins are still noticeable.

Aftertaste: leather notes, bitter substances, orange zest, dried fruit

Conclusion: A delicious caroni, unfortunately with little complexity and few fruit notes. For 61.5% it is almost mild.

Overall rating: 88 points

Sweetness: 1.5 / 5
Fruit: 1.5 / 5
Spice: 2.5 / 5
Complexity: 2.5 / 5
PL (175 €): 4/5

Gentle aroma. First taste is nice fruity sweet, but after approx. 3 second starts burning (stronger than you would expect from 43%) aftertaste is not pleasant, short with salt tones.

Ein Geheimtip,ein super Caroni und aus einem der besten Jahrgänge bei Caroni
Würde Velier draufstehen würde die Flasche gleich 3x soviel kosten.
Schwer stark und wunderschön ölig im Glas,eine wunderbare Nase,schöner langer Nachhall.
Der hohe Alkoholgehalt ist schön eingebunden,man sollte ihn jedoch grosszügig im Glas atmen lassen
Die Flaschen sind (Stand 1/2018) noch gut zwischen 120-140 Euro im Handel zu bekommen.
Das ist ein fairer Preis und in Anbetracht dass Caroni schon jetzt Geschichte ist und bald aus sein wird ist der Preis geradezu einer der letzten Aufrufe sich einzudecken.

A difficult rum, with some smokiness and absolutely no sweetness. However extremely rich in flavour

Let's read the programm : Caroni, cask strengh (or almost), 18y old. That sounds good. Caution : vanilla-sugarbombs lovers, don't even think about trying this one ! You won't appreciate it. Seriously.
Colour : we don't care. Nose : not the most spectacular from this style. Quite smooth and fruity, the typical tar-like aromas are discreet. Almost disapointed at that time but the better is to come. Mouth, neat : ouch ! No doubt here, we have a Caroni. Strong, complex, explosion of flavours. A round side (fruits, sweetness) and a more woody side : oak and typical "phenolic", tar, liquorice... Finish is everlasting as expected. More liquorice I would say, a bit of herbal things, but there is something else I don't know how to describe (more mineral, even almost ... "salty" ??? not sure)
There is something surprisingly smooth and round in this bottle (for a full proof old Caroni, I mean - don't misunderstand me!) In my opinion it is not needed to add water.
Interesting Caroni expression. Features the expected typical flavours but still different from other bottlings.

Quoi de beau au programme : un Caroni de 18 ans, brut de fut ou pas bien loin (plus de 61°), voila qui s'annonce bien !
Avertissement pour les bouches sucrées et amateurs de rhums-sirops à la vanille : ne vous approchez pas de cet genre de bouteille, vous n'allez vraiment pas aimer et à ce prix ce serait du gâchis.
Robe : on s'en fout. Nez : pas le plus spectaculaire que j'ai senti pour ce type de rhum. Plutôt rond et doux pour un rhum aussi fort, le côté "goudron" est assez discret. A ce moment je ressens presque un début de déception mais... en bouche : boum ! Explosion de parfums, cette fois plus de doute sur l'origine de la bouteille :o) Il y a un côté assez rond (fruits doux entre autres...) et en même temps une partie plus boisée avec le fameux "goudron", phénolique, réglisse... Final interminable comme espéré, avec toujours le côté réglisse et boisé, un peu herbacé mais il y a autre chose que j'ai du mal à décrire, plus minéral (presque... "iodé" ? Je peux me tromper)
Je trouve ce rhum étonnamment rond et facile (pour ce type de rhum, j'entends ! ça reste du viril) Je n'ai pas eu envie d'ajouter d'eau, bien que ça libère surement d'autres arômes.
Au final un très bon Caroni, avec les arômes typique du genre mais différent d'autres embouteillages : c'est ce qui fait que c'est intéressant en même temps!

Výtečné Caroni. Typické Caroni, které bohužel není tak dobré jako Caroni, ale chutná skvěle.

Mein erster Caroni Rum.
Und er hat mich sofort überzeugt.
So viel Geschmack in einem Glas.

Caroni classic heavy style, almost at points like an older sherry whisky: Big, bold, fruity, oily...Truly a big Caroni.