Valinch & Mallet Clarendon Spirit of Art #3 1995

Another sampling from the beginning of the year. I bought a bottle upon release and I really like this one. When you open the bottle the flavours just come at you nd it intensifies when you pour it ibt your glass. After resting for a while all flavours are really nice and very well balanced overall. Love the intensity and fruity profile and that the wood isn't the dominant part when thinking about the age.

the big hit of my 2023 rumfest. the leather and dark licorice are very pronounced (and striking).

1995 remains an impressive vintage. On par with Artesanal, possibly a touch ahead thanks to even more intense sweet-sour fruit notes. Exquisite.

Mega delicious fruit basket on the nose: lychee, mango, papaya, banana. Plus caramel and vanilla. No woodiness at all. On the palate, a nice sweet caramel note that transitions into toasty nuttiness. In between, again and again, a few of the fruity notes that were already there on the nose. The finish is really long. Chapeau V

What a nose...a real fruit bomb...overripe plum, sour cherry and something tropical...on the palate this only continues until light woodiness and spiciness is added.... The finish is then again dominated by fruit (prune and dried apricot)!An excellent Clarendon! Chapeau!

Raspberries note with some perfumed lychee is a highlight for me. It continues to the palate with mocha, roasted nuts and spices. Very enjoyable.

An interesting 26-year-old Clarendon, relatively much red fruit with vanilla and caramel in the aroma, the taste is much more woody with a longer aftertaste.

Nose: V&M > RA > RC = FSB-BS The lower ABV bottling presents the more fruity and peasant nose straight up. Others significantly more heavy, dark and sharp. Palate: [Velier] > RA > RC > FSB-BS > V&M On the palate I have to give it to the higher proof combatants as they are all properly evil in what they do. However, imho V&M bottled their cask at the exact right ABV to enjoy the EMB right from the bottle.

I was able to get a hard to find dram in Singapore, and it's similar to a clarendon 23yr emb I've had in the past. Complex and classy. In the aroma, it has coffee, smoke, caramel and tropical fruits. On the taste, it's a complex mix of vanilla, coffee, and nuts. It's similar to the black tot MBR series, or the Tiger shark. It's a classy bottling, but not my favorite.

Comparing two 1995 Clarendon vintage. Will I encounter my nemesis? RA 26y, 67,2% V&M 26y, 56,9% C: Port wine. N: 5min. This feels tight. And yes, my nemesis (pencil shavings) is present here. There is a pleasant sweetness, but in less volume than the Rum Artesanal. 30min Very similar to the RA. The sweet peaches and pencil shavings seems to be part of the vintage, but I find this V&M rougher, more rustic in comparison. M: Mangos, peaches and of course crushed aspirins and pencil shavings: my kryptonite. These two 1995 Clarendon vintages are very similar. I´d say that the RA has more balance and is rounder while the V&M is wilder. F: Long and medicinal sour. B: No. This type of aging is not my cup of tea. Winner? The RA.