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. Tasted again and one point more, the end of the bottle is splendid. Buy it before it disappears from the shelves.

Extreme alcoholic spiciness. Without water exorbitantly spicy and biting. Where should be the pleasure. With water quickly watery. A comparison with Poteen 90% vol. or Whisky 61%vol. is helpful. Where does this biting come from?

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.

Huge molassa taste.

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.

Gefällig aber mit einer Note von zu lang gezogenen Grüntee.

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 😊

Cool, aningen funky, Wood pot still, komplex men funken är lite over the top.

Update: Back in the glass after a long time. Also in direct comparison with an anoxidized sample. Both delicious, but also very different. In addition to the dried fruit and liquorice with brown sugar, the fresh one also has some banana (overripe) wafting around. Very tasty. The nose develops beautifully and the palate is simply delicious with licorice, dried fruit, prunes, wood and brown sugar.

Tolle Nase wie man sie aus der Rare Cask Serie kennt, auch wenn sie nicht so kräftig ist wie von anderen ED Rare Cask. Sehr fasslastig mit dunklen und röstigen Aromen. Leider auch eine alkoholische stechende Note vorhanden. Am Gaumen süß und dunkel würzig, also Vollrohrzucker und Lakritz, sowie andere intensive Geschmäcker. Reicht insgesamt nicht an die anderen ED Rare Cask Rums heran, aber dieser Rum muss sich nicht verstecken.

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!

8,6:On the nose, we have a strong barrel impact with roasted wood notes like caramel, leather, nuts, cocoa and coffee, spicy vanilla and marmelade like dried, citrus fruits with orange and raisins, as the molasses is herbaceous, slightly dark with licorice. On aeration, Demerara sugar is caramelized, also dried fruits with prunes and apricots, spiced with cinnamon and a whiff of a tobacco. 8,8:On the palate, the attack is delicious, but still complex with fruits like banana, prunes and citrus fruits, roasted wood notes like caramel, milk chocolate, coffee, toffee and especially Irish cream, slightly salty and oaky, as the molasses is grassy, herbaceous, later dark with black tea and licorice...as we see a strong barrel impact, also with slightly tannic touch. 8,7:The finish is long, dry and tannic, very buttery, like on the palate, joined by Demerara sugar and hints of coconut.

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

Seit langem wieder mal im Glas, das erste mal hat er nicht geschmeckt (69 Punkte). Eine sehr schüchterne Nase. Karamell, Leder und feine Würze. Viel Kaffee!! Zurückhaltende Trockenfrüchte und Tabak. Blind würde ich die Reifung eindeutig kontinental verorten. Im Mund pelzig, holzig, alkoholisch und bitter. Mit dem Abgang gewinnt er dann wieder. Warm, gebrannter Zucker. Ein feiner und guter Rum dem Zeit und Muse gewidmet werden will. Am Ende schafft er es aber nicht, aus dem Schatten der tropischen Opulenz seiner Brüder zu treten.