Newfoundland Screech

Didn't enjoy the taste very much even mixing it with coke. Won't be buying this again

An interesting addition, not a run you over at the liquor store though

Oh my, the bottle just came in, and I instantly regret ordering it. Newfoundland rum, I read, and curiosity took over. A big mistake. It's always a warning sign when people have to invent a ritual to coax themselves into drinking an alcoholic beverage (remember that bad, bitter Bohemian absinth burned with a sugarcube?)

The rum looks attractive enough in the bottle, dark, mahogany color, no doubt courtesy of Caramel and co. The smell is faint, distant, paint thinner and burnt sugar, with some fruits in the back.

But the taste, oh my, the taste! It begins with straight up sugar, and lots of it. There is really no mistaking it - it's not subtle at all. Obviously a column distillate, because there is none of that pot still chewiness, no depth or volume, instead, what you get is an imbalanced, thin mixture of the initial artificial sweetness that is very quickly drowned in strong, unpleasant, astringent bitterness. Think old teabags, like a mug of tea you made in the morning to drink with breakfast, but forgot about, and you discover it in the afternoon, cold, and unpalatably bitter. It just screams barrel aging gone wrong - probably very old barrels used too many times that can only impart this residual bitterness, once all the caramel, vanilla and other interesting flavors are long gone.

Even when mixed, it imparts the drink with that unpleasant, bitter, astringent, lingering note. This is really a bottled disaster.

Avoid.

What a great experience to have a rum from a cold climate country, Canada. Unfortunately, harsh and unbalanced.