Foursquare Exceptional Cask Selection XXIII Covenant 2005 18yr 58%

"Today there are two Foursquare: 1. covenant: This one tastes like it looks. Lots of dark fruit, somewhat leathery and dry on the palate. The cask influence is very strong, almost too strong. You have to know what you're getting into, but if you like it, you won't be disappointed. The alcohol is well integrated. Delicious Foursquare that I could imagine really enjoying from time to time! 2nd Absolutio: Awesome piece! There are no surprises on the nose or palate in terms of aromas. Mouth-filling, starts silky and pleasantly oily towards the finish. Pleasantly (dry) woody and chocolaty-fruity, great balance. The finish is very long and offers an interplay between dried fruit wrapped in chocolate and wood. I particularly like rums with these long, great finishes and that's what makes this rum for me! Wonderful, now it's "Hunters must hunt" Many thanks to Schnubbii!"

"#4654 10.03.2024 Relaxing at bit at home while my wife is out with a friend. Nose Wood, light roasted, light coconut, dried fruit, faint glue, balanced. Palate Wood, roasted, spicy, medium dry, tannins, faint chocolate, dried fruit, light cherry. Finish Long and warm, wood, plum, spice, light chocolate. The empty glass has some light leather and caramel notes."

"Beautiful Foursquare with a very broad aroma spectrum. Great basic sweetness, fresh fruit notes, subtle tobacco, caramel, chocolate. Great, oily viscosity on the palate. The alcohol is not overpowering either. All in all, for me this is a remarkable release in the ECS series, the advanced age works very well."

"The long tropical maturation has really done it good. Beautiful milk chocolate, coconut, almost Belize-like. Now if only it were a pure pot..."

"Tasted at the Pueblo del Ron Nuremberg 2024. I was surprised that it was possible to taste and even buy it at the fair. I wasn't quite taken by it at first, so I'll try it again tomorrow with a little more rest and time in the glass. Somehow I think it has a little off note. That's why it's a little further down the list for now. Edit: Tasted again at home in peace. I find something disturbing. Better than the Indelible, which was too thin for me, but there are far better ECS."

"Almost has a little bit of a tropically matured Diamond on the nose. Glue, dried fruit, spices, coconut and a pleasant sweetness. I really like it. Lots of spices, wood and bitterness on the palate, which is also present in the finish. I'm looking forward to a direct comparison with the Isonomy."

"Very good nose. Typical Fourquare profile, focus on caramel, restrained wood and spice. Light tobacco. Great mouthfeel, creamy, powerful, very spicy. The finish is great, warms well. You don't have to run after every Fourquare release, but if you want a nice, very good sipper, you've come to the right place. Top craftsmanship. Thanks to Bonn!"

"Tried alongside Foursquare ECS 2009 XVII. Both are classic Foursquare offerings and along the lines of what you would expect. This one has a honey nose, along with some fruit, some spice and mild glue notes. On the palate this one is much smoother and more balanced - lacking the intensity of Covenant. Oak, spice and a nice viscous mouthfeel, this is a pleasant rum from Foursquare."

"At 18 years, this is the longest cask maturation from the ECS range that I have ever tasted (the Shibbo was only 16 years old). Somehow slightly sour on the nose, like sea buckthorn, plus plenty of tannins from the cask, a little yellow fruit and caramel pudding. Toasted cask, tobacco, café au lait, malt on the palate. I classify it in the upper third of the ECSs. However, the Sovereignty, Shibbo and Redoutable definitely rank higher."

"Sehr sehr leckerer Foursquare, rund und süffig. Ungewöhnlich floral und blumig dezent nach Sandelholz, Honig, Rose & Lychee, fruchtig nach Mango, Rosinen und Dörrpflaumen, würzig nach Milchschokolade, Karamell und scharfem Ingwer. Sehr vollmundig und ungewöhnlich Komplex. Endlich Mal ein etwas anderer Foursquare!"

"Tasted at the Village in Nuremberg. Neat Foursquare. I have associations with pickled green peppercorns on the nose. Goes well with the spicy, peppery profile on the palate. But overall not my feel good Foursquare."

"After a long day of digging out for a fireplace in a garden, it's time for something I've been waiting for. To date, the oldest Foursquare rum. In the nose it has the Barbados profile of tropical fruits and dried fruits, and in the notes it's very woody, with other notes of chocolate, spice and some tobacco"

"After 18 years of maturation, it is of course to be expected that the cask has a strong influence on the overall picture. Fortunately, there are not too many bitter substances in play here and the sticky note present immediately after pouring increasingly fades to make room for coconut, vanilla and dried fruit. However, there is an irritating, perfumed aftertaste right from the start, as if I've had a load of hairspray in my open mouth, which I know from many a scotch from the 60s and 70s, but have never had with a rum. This aroma doesn't bother me directly, but I would have liked the Covenant even better without it."

"The oldest Foursquare from the ECS series, even a year older than Isonomy, which I unfortunately no longer have for comparison. This rum has the characteristics of long ageing: Oak, leather, spices, dried fruit. Not bad, but not exceptionally good either."

"Scored worst in comparison with the 2011 and the Mystique. Alcohol not very well integrated, therefore a little too sharp. The wood influence and the tannins are too strong for me. Overall not as round as the other two."