Barikenn Long Pond Jamaica ITP

"The slap of the year. A superb 15-year-old longpond, almost entirely tropical, at an affordable price... From another time... And what a rum! The nose opens with overripe tropical fruit, wax and woody aromas. It's extremely greedy. With aeration, the woody aromas take on more prominence, always with a veil of solvent to back them up. But nothing is too much, the balance is great, I love this nose. On the palate, it's unfortunately too dominated by barrel aromas, even though it's very smooth and the alcohol is very well integrated. For a lover of woody gourmet profiles, this is an excellent rum. For a Jamaican lover, it will lack a little fruit, even though it's an ITP."

"Orange and tea on the first nose, then solvents and banana, almond cake. The wood is marked but not dominant. A touch of candy. Gentle entry on the palate. The esters are domesticated by the fruit. The palate is a little disappointing compared with the nose. The finish smells like vegetable tannins and cookies. A tropical dance hall with lots of cocktails being made, dynamic and relaxed. Repeatedly tasted and as good as ever."

"Wonderfully fruity and sweet on the nose... Overripe banana, some pineapple, peach and delicate ester notes. Oily and velvety in the mouth .... The fruitiness continues here... Here also beautifully integrated barrel notes (bitterness, wood) all together very harmonious. Alcohol extremely well integrated, blind I would have guessed under 50%. I don't really like this low ester LP, but I don't miss it at all in this bottling. For me, it's the best I've tasted from Barikenn so far. Today in May Tai! Absolutely brilliant... I should actually give it a few more points but we're not in a cocktail bar here. Strong performance!"

"From a Long Pond I would have expected a pronounced pastry scent, but instead it is barely hinted at. On the nose coconut, chocolate, woody and a slight fruity note. The palate confirms the scents perceived on the nose, but with a more pronounced fruity note (dried or ripe fruit) and a slight roastiness. The finish is long, but light. What struck me was this marked note of barrel mixed with grapes on the finish, it reminds me of the scents of wineries made of moisture, wood and wine! Overall a very good rum with its own personality although with some limitations. I really liked the woody part and found it well integrated as did the alcoholic part. I will take a gamble, at a blind tasting I would have said a demerara rather than a Jamaican. A good buy!"

"The nose starts invitingly fruity (sweet) and mildly spicy. In addition, I notice a note like fresh unbaked cake dough and something like musty forest floor - very interesting!On the palate oily, lots of spice and barrel notes, sweet but clearly less fruity. The finish is long and slightly bitter (cocoa and coffee).In sum, a very good rum. I have unfortunately the OB ITP no longer for comparison but in my memory, the OB bottling is not quite as bitter in the aftertaste and a little more fruity. I give this rum but one point more because it seems more intense to me compared to the OB bottling."

"Very good, rather low ester Long Pond. Nice glue note! The tropical maturation comes out very well!"

"A very nice long pond with a lovely nose: overripe fruit (I love that smell), spices, a touch of wood,solvent… Falls a little short in the mouth though, a touch too light for me. 2nd tasting. Adding one point to my rating: 84 to 85"

"8,8:On the nose, the opening notes are medicinal with esters, solvents and fruity with overripe tropical fruits like banana, mango and toasted coconut, yellow fruits, raisins.We have a roasted wood with dark chocolate, nuts like almonds, honeycomb and spices like vanilla, pepper. On aeration, we notice herbaceous molasses, citrus, enticing pastry. 8,6:On the palate, the attack is spicy and fruity, joined with wood, some glue, as our tasting buds are attacked with dried fruits, toasted coconut, banana, spices like pepper, vanilla, salty and roasted wood with nuts, pastry, caramel, cream toffee, later dark chocolate.As the first bite is quite intense, the wave that comes after, is delicious, round, with yellow fruits and mango, dark chocolate and a bit vegetal molasses. 8,7:The finish is long, dry and tannic, nicely round, delicious with notes from palate, some mocha joins, a barrel mark is a bit stronger here.."

"I expected a reserved nose, I found an expressive fruitiness that surprised me with this pith. Passion fruit, mango, vanilla, candied fruit, with a delicate vegetal side. Delicious. Here it plays along with quite big LPs.The mouth is more intense, spicy, but also more pungent. The herbal side comes out more clearly. The fruit is more acidic than on the nose and not as harmonious. It's very intense, but it's also a bit too brutal, unfortunately.The rum is not unlike the NRJ/Velier Cambridge 2010, less nail polish and esters, but similar fruity harmonic pro in the nose, in the mouth the harmony from the STCE wins.My expectations for this rum were not too high, despite the high praise from Rod. But predominantly tropical aged Long Ponds are great cinema, despite minor shortcomings in the mouth."

"Delicious Long Pond of the lighter variety but still with great aromas and super taste. Nice notes of beeswax, forest, fruits, wood and solvents. Thanks Rod for the sample 🙏🙌🏽"

"The classic Long Pond ITP markers are very clearly recognizable in this rum. What I find a little annoying, however, is that it is a little too alcoholic for me. In my opinion, it is not well integrated. Even after a longer standing time, the alcohol remains very present. This clearly prevents it from getting a better rating"

"Great creaminess on the palate. The alcohol could be a little better integrated."

"Dominant notes of toasted coconut on the nose with light ester and glue notes in the background. The taste is fruity with coconut notes. Quite round and almost drinkable with well-integrated alcohol. I like it very much. I also really like it on the 2nd and 3rd tasting. Another +2 (0.2). Edit: In direct comparison with the Schotman LP2007, I like the Barikenn a little better. PLV must be emphasized here again!!!"

"I find the nose very pleasantly fruity with a slight ester. On the palate, the rum is more on the woody, roasted and spicy side, but it still comes across as light and thin. This is poorly integrated! The finish is also on the dark side!"

"These super nice ester notes, which leave a certain furiness on the tongue due to the fruit acidity with a dash of coconut, come into their own here. Milk chocolate to dark chocolate on the finish."