Rhum J.M XO

An intense, Rhum Agricole from Martinique, made in the foothills of Montagne Pelee, lies JM’s Rum distillery, dating back to the year 1790. The name comes from the initials of Jean-Marie Martin, the founder of the distillery. The rhum is distilled in column stills & aged in oak for over 10 years. It has an aromatic birth with notes of toasted nut, lemon, sage, mango, passion fruit & a hint of a Bourbon; while a copper filled life adds hints of citrus, caramel, cinnamon & nuts; that led to a long & warm death with notes of white pepper, cinnamon & nutmeg. June 2017 / April 2018

Oh, wow. That’s so good. Opens up a lot in the glass, especially with a bit of aeration. There’s so much going on here. It’s not just an evolution of the VSOP, although it still clearly has that offering as its progenitor, this is next level. I’m not sorry about spending the money on it (probably 60-70% more than the VSOP), but it’s entirely clear where the money went. It’s like a figgy pudding in the most British sense and is somehow carrying many tropical and dried fruit notes that I didn’t pick up on in any of the other JM offerings. Highly recommend!