Foursquare Isonomy

The nose is rich and decadent starting with dusty oak and butterscotch pudding underscored with bananas foster, coconut macaroons, and fresh cut pineapple then freshly lit pipe tobacco followed by cherry pie filling, chocolate orange and mango that transitions to mild baking spices of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, leather and old polished mahogany with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a velvety rich mouthfeel starting with dusty oak and butterscotch pudding that quickly veers towards sweet yet mildly sour fruits of grilled pineapple, toasted coconut, mildly charred lime and slightly underripe bananas then Black Forest gateau, espresso, leather and old polished mahogany with medium ethanol burn. The finish is long starting sweet with boozy pineapple upside down cake with bourbon spiked frosting followed by mild espresso, toasted coconut flakes then mildly sour citrus of cherries jubilee, caramelized mangoes that transitions to mild spices of ginger, leather, and old polished mahogany that lingers for minutes. This is a hell of a rum that those 17 years in ex-bourbon casks have really brought old dusty oak notes that never veer into an overly tannic bitterness but work in harmony with the sweet tropical fruits of the rum as well as rich sweets from the bourbon influence. Foursquare almost always seems to impress me with their creations but these older fully matured in ex-bourbon cask rums are on another level that could compete with spirits that can cost multiples of what a bottle of their rums cost. Unfortunately it seems I missed this release but a huge thanks to @soonershrink for the generous sample for me to try.

Tobacco on the nose. Some banana and tropical fruit mixed with tobacco on the palate. I like it but too much tobacco for me.

Medium amber. Strong oak spice (vanilla), banana, molasses. Complex spice (allspice, cinnamon), woody, dried fruit (fig). High alcohol (cask strength), burning spice finish. Epic 17 year rum. No funk, strong but restrained wood. Very expensive for rum, but value compared to other cult brown spirits.

Fantastic pour. Essentially a bourum with notes of molasses, bananas, dark fruit, pineapples, brown sugar, and honey with a spicy finish. Nose: Caramel, Pineapples, Brown Sugar, Vanilla, Honey, Sultanas, Treacle, Dates, Bananas, Cookie Dough, Apple Pie, Plums, Pecan Pie Palate: Molasses, Bananas, Caramel, Apricots, Pineapples, Vanilla, Milk Chocolate, Coconuts, Raisins, Makuna Honey Finish: Molasses, Bananas, Peaches, Dates, Figs, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves, Licorice

Another sample provided by @soonershrink that I bought with me on business travel. This might be one of the few times I think that I’ve had a pour every night. My normal one pour every few weeks has become once an evening here, as medicine post day long workshops , early mornings, time hour changes, and eating out 3x/day. Tonight’s pour is this FourSquare. Seventeen years of maturity in the tropics. Wow. That’s an equivalent of 30-40yrs in Scotland. Let that sink in. The sheer wood to spirit interaction goes into overdrive with such high climate temperatures. Outside any rum named Caroni, this one is now my favorite rum pour. Heavy oak, but we’ll balanced with chocolate, pineapples, and cherries. None of that Caroni or Long Pond funk, but plenty of horsepower just from that wood influence. Kids, this isn’t meant to mix…please don’t do that. This is meant to slowly sip after a grueling day of 10 hour strategy workshops held at business travels. Thanks again to @soonershrink for the pour !

Had a little sip last night of the Sovereignty, and found myself liking it more than I had previously. It got me thinking about the most recent ECS release, which I had passed over because of price and fear of too much tannin. Today my curiosity got the best of me, and I decided to pick this one up. Thankfully, there were still a couple bottles left on the shelf. It’s expensive, but 17 years in bourbon barrels in the Caribbean got me. Pineapple cake, vanilla, brown sugar, candied nuts, banana, coconut, key lime, slightly floral, semisweet chocolate, dusty oak warehouse, cherry pipe tobacco, menthol. I was worried this would go too bitter like the Shibboleth; fortunately, it manages to be nicely woody but stay short of overly bitter. The oak is there, but it’s less prominent than I thought it’d be. I’m admittedly somewhat limited in my rum experience, but this takes up the mantle as the best rum I’ve tried to date, which had previously been occupied by FS Nobiliary. Unfortunately my taste of Nobiliary was only a sample, so I won’t be able to do a proper comparison. But, as I’m quite fond of the FS 2009 (and do still have a bottle), I did a little SbS. This was clearly deeper, richer, and more well-rounded with the oak, tropical fruit, and vanilla flavors. This is bold and rich, but it’s also super easy to drink. Truly an incredible rum. It’s in the 4.75-5 range, but going with a 5 for now.