Lemon Hart 151 Rum

Nose - dark molasses, chocolate malt, toffee, coffee, nutmeg, allspice, black pepper, toasted macadamia nut, dried apple, mint, burnt toast, high ethanol burn. Taste - dark molasses, boozy chocolate, allspice, nutmeg, orange and lemon zest, overripe banana, coffee, burnt chocolate chip cookie, pecan, toffee, black pepper, high alcohol bite, finishing medium long with dark molasses, chocolate, baking spice, and black pepper flavors. There’s nothing like sipping 151 proof rum to make you forget about a hard day. I thought the Smith & Cross yesterday was hot. This is in another league, although I feel that it actually drinks under its proof. The nose is rich and dark, with molasses, toasted nuts, burnt toffee, and an aroma that reminds me of Ovaltine chocolate malt. The palate hits hard. Boozy chocolate, citrus zest, banana, and dark molasses abound. Overall, this is better than average. It’s too hot and youthful to be a quality sipper, but there are actually some really nice dark aromas and flavors if you can handle the heat. This surpasses my admittedly very low expectations, but don’t bust down the doors to grab a bottle.

Rating: 10/23 OK, now this has a proof that competes with Everclear. I'm skeptical of it neat, but I have high hopes for it as a mixer. N: Surprisingly, very sweet. I get big molasses with a little lemon tartness and some spiciness that reminds me a bit of some of the vodkas I've tried that got rid of the meatiness but ended up being quite harsh. Yeah, that alcohol presence is really big here. I'm having trouble getting more, but I might have gotten a dash of wood at first. P: Tart, nutty, rich, molasses, maybe some wood. It took me a bit, but I've now realized that what this reminds me of is that sherry-aged bottle of Cambus I have. I presume it was aged in oloroso, explaining the tartness and nuttiness. I'm struggling to understand why those flavors would be present here though. This has a much stronger alcohol presence though, with a much flatter bitterness. The Cambus is sweeter and more complex with substantially better balance, but the basic profile does align fairly well. There's malt versus molasses and possible fireworks, but there is a common character here for sure. The Cambus is definitely a lot better, but this isn't awful. It does have a big bitter edge to it that is flat and hard to get past though. Adding a fair amount of water brings out some more complexity. In this state, there's more depth to the molasses and spices, with a bit of green banana and something savory that's a bit like a campfire coming in. This is actually kind of sippable. F: Faint hints of the molasses, spices, and lemon, but mostly a bitter abyss. Tons of char, perhaps. - Conclusion - I can't say I enjoyed this neat. I think I'd go for Plantation O.F.T.D. instead. It also has a weird flavor that I think makes it challenging as a mixer, but I really like how it tastes with water added, so I think there's great promise there. I don't even know what to think of that Cambus similarity. So adding substantial water took me from something like a 9 neat to more like a 7. Adding just a moderate amount of water left me looking at a 9 or 10. With the moderate amount of water having some lingering complexity, I think a 10 is warranted. As a neat pour, I'd pass. As a mixer, I still might recommend this though, if the price were right. I'll need to try some more overproof rums to compare and I might have to get some more of this to actually try as a mixer, but this kind of captures that pure dark rum essence in concentrated form. Thank you @ctbeck11 for the sample.

Dark, Rich, Funky, Flavorful. A very good rum. And you only need to use half of it if you want to get the same kick as the normal proof version.

Granted, nobody drinks 151 with any illusion of enjoyment, save for the quick stupor that entails. But proof it down to about 110 with some simple syrup, and this stuff will be on your waffles from now on! I figured what the heck, and I'm so glad I did. Enjoy!

Performed a three-way side-by-side with Lemonhart 151 (current release), Hamilton 151, and Plantation OFTD last night, sipped neat from a Glencairn. Bottom line, you can't go wrong with any of the three. On the nose, OFTD started with traditional Demerara aromas, but less than the other two. Lemonhart was an immediate espresso and flan bomb. Coming back to the OFTD after a while brought out Vietnamese coffee, full of light roast, milk, sugar, condensed milk. Hamilton was more just Demerara and brown sugar and deep caramel but no coffee. I could have nosed all of these all night. Tastewise, Lemonhart carried such delicious, rich, creamy, dark, sweet, notes with premium espresso underneath. Hamilton was less intense, focusing more on burnt dark sugar, caramel, some dark fruit, and oozing molasses. OFTD is similar to the Hamilton but fruitier with a touch of coffee and some barrel bitterness that sets it apart. Not that it matters, but I liked Lemonhart 151 the most