It’s 2020. It’s December. Let’s shut this year down with a brand new whiskey every day. It’s my own personal whiskey advent calendar. +6! Dec. 3, 2020 So I was in my basement, watching reruns of West Wing and sniffing a $30 rum out of a Four Roses glencairn, and I begin to wonder: how did we get here? I know I said “new whiskey,” but I also enjoy serendipity in my whiskey shenanigans. I’m at one of my local stores, saying how much I just enjoyed the redemption rum finish, and the kind lady offers a new product saying, “I bet most people couldn’t tell that this rum isn’t a bourbon.” It was destiny. It was a challenge. I made it rain $30. According to the tag, this rum from the Dominican Republic is made from cane juice, which is harvested in an “environmentally conscious” way and then aged for 12 years in ex-bourbon barrels. Nose is “hot damn.” That’s what happens when a bourbon fan sniffs rum. Are you even supposed to sniff rum? I’m going to say this has mint, coconut, red velvet cake. Sweet and delicious. Body hits initially with the red velvet. It’s sweet, chocolatey, sugary. Back end of the body feels like bourbon. Sort of. Caramel, milk chocolate, fudge. That body is quite good. The finish also reminds me of a bourbon. Chocolate powder, sugar, baking spices. Hint of coconut, but mostly the baked goods package. This is good, but there’s no way someone could mistake this for a bourbon. It has a bourbon influence, but that’s as far as I can take it. In terms of that influence, it doesn’t hold a candle to the Balvenie American oak or the Crown Royal “not bourbon whiskey.” Still at $30, this drink deserves a place in the market, just not on my shelf. ‘Tis the season. I’m day-to-day on my whiskey selection, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Merry whiskey to all, and to all a beer flight!