Versailles El Dorado Rare Collection VSG 2002

A rum decried by the RumX community and praised by Serge Valentin. So I had to buy it and taste it. I was rather disappointed when I opened the bottle, but I'm familiar with the phenomenon... A nose of old leather, flambéed banana, brown sugar and tea, with good concentration. A slightly peaty palate with fat and brown sugar. The finish is abrupt, but honey and cask reappear after a while. The empty glass is splendid with previously hidden aromas. Apart from the fact that this rum is too lively when opened, I find nothing but good in it. It's perfectly balanced and deep. It could have a slightly broader aromatic palette, but then it would be one of the great Demerara rums. Buy it before it disappears from the shelves.

Nose and finish come with intense citrus notes. Palate dominated by dried fruits. Not very heavy on „classic“ Versialles notes you would expect from a VSG ie somewhat of a weird animal. Nevertheless a nice expression. Oxidation changes the profile quite noticabley. Less citrus and more dried fruits as well as Versailles notes on the nose. Also nice in it’s „evolved“ form.

An intense, full-bodied Versailles on the nose, with a changing profile: there's the dark side, with baked caramel and Demerara sugar, spicy wood on licorice, pepper and vanilla, cocoa and coffee, prunes, raisins and orange. A touch of alcohol is noticeable and disturbs the nostrils a little. Aeration does it good and gives it freshness. The palate reveals another facet of the Versailles alembic: the heavy, herbaceous fruity notes are replaced by citrus notes of orange, dark wood, milk chocolate, spices and bitter notes of licorice, aniseed and leather. Caramel, molasses and burnt sugar add a little roundness to this warm profile, unfortunately rather marked by alcohol. A special mention for the pleasant saline note. The finish is long, dark, spicy, woody and bitter, tannic and caffeinated. The aromas are not as strong as expected. Spices, caramel and molasses are present on the finish, accompanied by raisins, prunes and orange. An unusual profile, not unpleasant, but a little unbalanced, especially when compared with other Versailles or the other rums in the Rare Collection range.

I have the entire series in more than one copy and I really like them because the releases are good in general. Love the citrus note from nose to finish and the wood and tannins with other fruits in the mix. Lightly dry on the palate. The flavours are still in the glass the day after 😊

Update: Nach langem mal wieder im Glas. Auch im Direktvergleich mit einem anoxidierten Sample. Beide lecker, doch auch sehr verschieden. Im frischen habe ich zusätzlich zu den Trockenfrüchten und der Lakritze mit brunem Zucker noch etwas Banane (überreif) wabern. Sehr lecker. Nase entwickelt sich schön und am Gaumen einfach lecker nach Lakritz, Trockenfrückten, Dörrpflaume, Holz und braunem Zucker.

Another from the Rare Collection, which I really like overall. It's actually crazy that these very good drops are still available; it just has the wrong name on it 😉 Nose: once the alcohol has evaporated, a very pleasant and tasty spicy-woody-roasty affair. Soft, sweet licorice with dark maple syrup and mocha chocolate. In addition, a fine fruity note of blood orange, dried date and soft prune. There is also something fresh and tart from blackcurrant, plus a little pepper. The palate is again woody and spicy with the soft licorice up front and some chocolate behind it. Dried dates and prunes are also consistent here. A little more caramel and almost toffee. Damn well integrated alcohol. Very accessible + good

Very intense and concentrated! lots of resin, licorice and some citrus and caramel on the nose, then milk chocolate, strong espresso, prunes and gingerbread, salty caramel and treacle with tangerine peel. Nevertheless, aromatically very exciting!

Great nose as we know it from the Rare Cask series, even if it is not as strong as from other ED Rare Cask. Very cask-heavy with dark and roasted aromas. Sweet and darkly spicy on the palate, i.e. whole cane sugar and licorice, as well as other intense flavors. Overall, it doesn't come close to the others, but this rum has nothing to hide.

The alcohol is not entirely perfectly integrated, but as a lover of the Versailles profile, you get your money's worth here.

Huge molassa taste.

a subtile complexity on nose and palate, very balanced but the alcohol is a bit too present. while dried fruits and mango and apricots dominate the nose, on the palate it is the chocolate and wood that rules. Not quite as bodied and heavy as other special releases of DDL

Beautiful VSG notes! Very good PLV.

A nice Versailles, not as deep as a Rev but still highly enjoyable. The sugar/caramel added is not disturbing and overall the rum is not that dirty. Not all Guyana are rums that I find pleasant, this one though is one that I liked

I tried this in a lovely place in genova. Very good rum with a nice complexity and mix of dried fruits. The alcohol could be integrated better, otherwise this could have a 85+ rating The nose reminds me of a hampden 🤔

EastIndia Company⚓️Hat mich in der durch die Nase in einen feuchten, holzigen Schiffsrumpf versetzt, der Gewürze transportiert. Durchaus angenehm. Schöne Komplexität.