Nose - light molasses, salted caramel, floral notes, milk chocolate, earthy mint, vanilla, almond cake, apple, toasted marshmallow, banana, barrel char, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - molasses, brine, butterscotch, oily peat, sour apple, cherry, allspice, cocoa, spearmint, lemon oil, spicy oak, tar, tobacco, leather, moderate to high alcohol bite, finishing medium long with dark molasses, peaty citrus oil, and spicy spearmint flavors. This is my first of three Privateer rum reviews. Privateer is a new distillery for me. They are a craft producer located in Ipswich, Massachusetts and pride themselves on producing rums without added sweetening, flavoring, filtering, or spicing. A distillery after my own heart! This particular bottling is cask strength, slightly younger than three years old, and finished in Laphroaig barrels. The nose is creamy, with molasses, salted caramel, sweet almond cake, and toasted marshmallows and bananas. The palate hits hard with oily, rich molasses, deeply sour citrus, tobacco, mint, and leather. The Laphroaig influence is present but not overbearing, although the citrus quality is rather strong. The finish lingers nicely with lasting citrus oil, mint, leather, and tannic oak. Overall, this is a hell of a rum. The flavors are surprisingly dark and rich for a rum so young, although the youth is certainly present. It’s undeniably great rum. It could be outstanding rum if it were slightly more mature and the citrus component wasn’t so overwhelming. A big thank you to my friend @jonwilkinson7309 for the sample and for introducing me to this quality distillery.