El Dorado 3 Year Cask Aged Demerara Rum

Review:  El Dorado 3yr Cask Aged Rum (91.0pts)
a review by Chip Dykstra (Aka Arctic Wolf)
Posted October 2009

In the Bottle  4.0/5

A new fancy bottle for this  El Dorado. Its clear and it serves the purpose of showcasing the clear spirit.  I feel that more attention on the label could have been given to the uniqueness of this product, how it was filtered and the aging process.

In the Glass  9/10

I smell a hint of mint. (rhyme unintended). A really nice light sweetness but no burly molasses, or oaky notes at all. The filtering has taken as well as given. I like the complete lack of bitter notes.

The rum looks like Vodka, but smells of candy cane, and just a hint of brown sugar.

In the Mouth  56/60

In my mouth the taste is light but sweet. A buttery feel now. This is mild on the sweetness with light hints of brown sugar. All of the spices are muted as well giving that mint a nice expression. This really has a different taste than other rums, new spices I cannot quite fathom, but everything in mild moderation. The filtering has removed some of the thicker heavier molasses notes, it has also removed the bitterness. In a way we could say that El Dorado has achieved through filtering what most companies must achieve through aging!

In the Throat  13.5/15

What a pleasant buttery oil this has. The flavour just coats in the throat and stays and stays. Moderation and mildness in flavour make this an immensely enjoyable experience.

The Afterburn  8.5/10

Here is what I found strange. I liked everything about this Rum but I find myself not indulging as often as I expected. There is something here that I cannot quite put my finger on, a spice or a flavour that lurks beneath the surface that I do not like. It is like an off note in a beautiful song that doesn’t spoil the song, but leaves you not listening as often. Or maybe it is more like a great movie with one scene that makes no sense which, while not bad, kind of slightly spoils the experience.

If you are interested in comparing more scores, here is a link to my other published Rum Reviews.

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My Final Score is out of 100 and you may (loosely) interpret the score as follows:

0-25     A spirit with a rating this low would actually kill you.
26-49   Depending upon your fortitude you might actually survive this.
50 -59  You are safe to drink this…but you shouldn’t.
60-69   Substandard swill which you may offer to people you do not want to see again.
70-74    Now we have a fair mixing rum or whisky.  Accept this but make sure it is mixed into a cocktail.
75-79    You may begin to serve this to friends, again probably still cocktail territory.
80-84    We begin to enjoy this spirit neat or on the rocks. (I will still primarily mix cocktails)
85-89    Excellent for sipping or for mixing!
90-94    Definitely a primary sipping spirit, in fact you may want to hoard this for yourself.
95-97.5 The Cream of the Crop
98+       I haven’t met this bottle yet…but I want to.

Very loosely we may put my scores into terms that you may be familiar with on a Gold, Silver, and  Bronze medal  scale as follows:

70 – 79.5    Bronze Medal (Recommended only as a mixer)
80 – 89.5     Silver Medal (Recommended for sipping and or a high quality mixer)
90 – 95         Gold Medal (Highly recommended for sipping and for sublime cocktails.)
95.5+            Platinum Award (Highest Recommendation)