Barrell Rum Tale of Two Islands

The rum comes through loud and clear, while the peat is ethereal. A warm, rich and welcoming approach on the nose. On the tongue, some of the peat smoke comes through, but with a shy approach. The bourbon itself is quite fulsome and pronounced, with a hefty chewiness and medium-dark flavor bill of fare. Overall, a strong and (mostly) standard Barrell expression that has just a touch of both Jamaica and Islay.

What a perfect blend of funk and refinement. I can taste both "islands," and they play together perfectly! The nose is primarily rum - like a light demerara but with a wonderful Jamaican signature - but there is a also nice sherry and smoke note intermingling in the backend. When I tasted this initially, I got Hampden Overproof with a scotch finish... but after a while in the glass, the primary note switched, and now I get scotch (malt) first with just a hint of demerara in the finish. How weird! Either way, it is a wonderfully complex pour, offering deep caramelized sugars, hojo, fruit, sherry, and dry malt finish.

Powerful hogo and fruit on the nose. The proof is overpowering to me. A teaspoon of water brought it down to a level I could drink. The palate still has plenty of hogo and sharp fruity notes mixed with hint of peat. The finish is sweet and medium length. Empty glass smells better than the rum itself. This is cool for the novelty. Happy to have a bottle, but I will not seek out another.

Not much for description, but I can say this is an amazing bottle. Glad I found two so I can save one.