English Harbour Madeira Cask Finish Rum

Rich and lavish marriage of Rum and Madeira.

Antigua is a tiny island in the Caribbean and the landowners have produced their Rum for centuries. Sure, it wasn't always so professional and premium, but amateurish and small-scale. But even then, the Rums of Antigua had their panache. It was in the early Thirties when a group of Rum vendors founded the Antigua Distillery, bought a bunch of land and made sure their supply of molasses didn't dry out unexpectedly. They've been producing various Rums since then, both light and aged Rums.

This particular bottle, the English Harbour Madeira Cask Finish, is an experimental small-batch release. Its base is a global blockbuster Rum, English Harbour, aged in ex-Bourbon casks for half a decade, then moved into barrels that previously held Malmsey Madeira and Bual Madeira for six months. Madeira is a very robust fortified wine from the Portuguese Madeira Islands and finishing Rum with its barrels brings the richness of its flavors to the already excellent Rum. The Spirit of Madeira takes the Rum beyond the regular and familiar, adding subtle fruity notes, honey overtones, and chocolate with cinnamon. It might have started as an experiment by dr. Frankenstein, but this monster is actually a beauty.