Rum Nation, Panama (25 year)

This was a bottle of rum I picked up at auction last year not knowing a great deal about the brand or the rum itself. As you can see above; I haven’t been able to find out all of the details I would like about this rum but I can tell you a little more about Rum Nation.

Founded by Italian rum enthusiast Fabio Rossi, Rum Nation has been curating and bottling some of the finest rums from across the world since the late 1990s. You may notice that the distillery is not known, this was a conscious decision at the very conception of Rum Nation to label with the areas of origin rather than distillery to convey the different characters of the rum-producing countries.

Nose

Grilled/charred pineapple with an almost brûlée caramelisation as the first note with a red, maybe stone fruit underneath – I’m thinking plums or cherries.

Dusty cocoa, a subtle leather (medium wear, aged but not old) and red wine spilled on a carpet. There are several moths in the vicinity.

Palate

This has a beautiful opening note of whipped chocolate mousse, almost praline like with a rich, chewy mouthfeel.
I find myself surprised by the distinct lack of woodiness or cask influence I would expect for 25 years… don’t get me wrong it’s there but I would guess closer to 10-12 years.

As I sit with this for longer I get green apple with a sprinkle of white pepper; leather like an old chair from a cigar lounge.

This has a short to medium finish that leaves behind a very pleasant residue.

7/10 – Comforting and familiar with little to no complexity.
(My score of 7 is based on the price I paid (£80) but at £2-300 I would drop this down to a low 6.