Pusser's Rum Original Admiralty Blend (Blue Label)

I forgot to review this when I purchased it some time ago (maybe a year or so) for a historic naval themed cocktail party, but it was brought to my attention when I was digging around for the right rum yesterday for a rum & tonic (it wasn't this one). Since I've been having a rum craving lately, I thought I would dive into this now, especially because I appreciate hogo flavors any time I can find them, which isn't often. I can't tell if it's just the Ohio market that's terrible (which it is), or if it's the entire Midwest that has slim pickings for quality rum. If TSA didn't love stealing from me, I'd love to hop down to Florida (not something I'd ever thought I'd say), stock up on rhum and cigars, and get the hell out of there. But alas, I'll take what I can get, and in this case, some classic British navy rum sounds pretty refreshing on this cloudy, pre-storm day. The color here is insanely dark and rich mahogany, which makes me miss when the bourbon market used to have products on the shelves with this same depth of color. The legs are very thick, and take a long time to form while barely moving at all. A funky, raw sugar syrup and hogo combination fill the air around the glass, but the actual nose is vegetal, woody, and slightly hot, with plenty of molasses and some chocolate notes as well. The sweetness of the bourbon barrels really come through here, with notes of sweet oak, toffee, and cookie combining well with the rich but funky and hogo molasses notes. The body delivers a lot of flavor up front, but is definitely quite light. The heat from the nose also finds it's way into the sip, and keeps the body approachable but no longer weak. Classic raw sugarcane and molasses are easily detectable at the front end, but there's also a bitter tinge that runs all the way through the finish. There's a great balance and back & forth with all of the above notes, as well as a polished, sweet woodiness and a touch of gum burn all mixed together. The finish is quite bitter and tastes dry, but the body doesn't fall off for a good while. The hogo notes on this one are definitely up front and easily detectable, and taste approachable enough for the more amateur rum/rhum drinkers (like myself) while still having deep enough flavor to be impressive for the price point. It does make me wonder if the sweet/bitter combo of this would in fact pair well with tonic, and what the other best usages in cocktails would be. It's for sure one of the most unique rums I own so far, and although I don't have many, it has enough of a difference to it to stand alone, as well as make me want to find similar flavors in other products.

Holy hogo! The nose is a contradiction, both richly sweet and rather funky. There are notes of molases, cola, vanilla, butter, grass, cumin, metal tarnish, as well as a hint of woody spice and leather. On the tongue it’s likewise sweet but not overly so, balanced by the herbal, grassy, and spice notes both peppery and savory. Molases, vanilla extract, cinnamon stick, allspice, cracked pepper, and bitter greens. Light to medium bodied, yet it thickens with chewing. Legs are heavy, slow and straight as an arrow. The finish is brown sugar melted in butter, cola stored in very tannic barrels, and a hint of chocolate covered raisins plus a smidge of tobacco. Nose: 6 Taste: 8 Body: 8 Finish: 7