Elixir Distillers of London Black Tot Rum Master Blender’s Reserve 2024

8,6:On the nose, the first impression we get is roasted wood and tropical fruits like unripe banana.There are chocolate, caramel, roasted nuts, perhaps toffee.We cannot miss dried fruits and citrus, metallic notes... On an aeration, molasses is with menthol and vegetal, the wood spicy, the fruits bourbon yellow, citrusy and very pleasant... 8,6:On the palate, the attack is very fruity, spicy with all kinds of tropical fruits like mango, passion fruit, banana, perhaps mandarine and dried currants.The wood is spicy, dry and very roasted with nuts, chocolate, caramel and pepper. The molasses is dark, bitter with licorice. When rested, it becomes more medicinal with menthol, rubber and tar.The wood is more charred, earthy, there is some fudge.Nicley balanced and round, as vegetal notes neutralize sweetness from charred wood notes. 8,5:The finish is tasty and long, woody and dry.There are coconut, tasty tropical and red fruits, citrus, delicious chocolate and nuts, complemented with earthy and dirty plastic, tar and bitter molasses with some wood tannins... Edit:27.1.25, 0,1 higher...

Tasting notes : Nose: Exotic fruit, caramel, leather, light esters. Palate: very fruity and citrusy, softened by notes of vanilla and caramel. Simple, effective, with a little length carried by licorice, it seems to me. Finish: a little shorter than the others, sweeter too: citrus, vanilla, milk chocolate. The most affordable & the most gourmand, without hesitation! An easy-sipper.

Sample 3 of 3 from UK Brand Ambassador and what a way to finish tasting of Black Tot! The jump in price is somewhat vast HOWEVER the jump in both flavour and complexity is equally vast and therefore fully justifiable. The overall flavour to me is “old, aged spirits” which is definitely high praise as I’ve had less complex whiskies with WAY higher price tags!! Deep and intricate sherry notes, slight fruit notes, lovely level of oak tannins and oak spices as well with a finish that lingers long enough to remind you of what you’ve just had! The longer in the glass, the more it changes as well - nosing upon pouring provides oak spiciness and barrel influence that eventually give way to roasted coffee notes, some dark chocolate and maybe a little caramel but like caramel drizzled on a red fruit The taste is exquisite - the word that sums it up for me is “integrated” no one item in the blend dominates or try to take over, each influence plays its part and then moves on providing a lovely complexity. Very happy with this one - a solid 8.5/10 for me

Delicious Black ToT. In direct conparsion to the 2022 and the 2023 version, this one is ahead! It looks like we‘re moving forward! Nice complexity and nice ester, rubber and mango notes. The finish tastes like a creme brulee with a orange peel and minty leaf on the top! The alcohol is integrated well!

My first Black Tot! Slightly phenolic on the nose, medicinal influences with dark fruit. This is also confirmed on the tongue, alcohol comes out a little, but is not too dominant. Dark chocolate, barrel and strong aromas. Delicious rum that needs time and can be enjoyed at leisure

Návrat caroni do black tot rum master blender’s reserve! Rozhodně to neuškodilo. Pěkný komplexní kousek, intenzivní nos - koření, kůže, čokoláda. V chuti se jedná spíš o jemnější kousek se sladkými tóny stejných prvků, které nabízí nos.

Franconian Rum Tasting Gang & Jakob, 2023-07-27 "Vorglühen": The first Black Tot since the 50th Anniversary that isn't too sweet for me. But somehow I can't get excited about it. Too unspectacular, too simple, too boring.

Not 100 % my cup of tee but pleasant with tar in it. I wasn’t bored guys.

Edit: tasted again, not bad, but from memory it doesn't come close to the Anniversary. Just sipped briefly, but the first impression is on the up again. Extensive tasting will take place on Saturday with the Franconian Tasting Gang and special guest Jakob.

Vůně jemnější, ale fajn po tropickém ovoci a vanilce. Chuťově velmi hezká davka mentolu či máty, vanilka, koření a poměrně dost trpkosti. V závěru lehce máta, tropické ovoce a propsaný sud. Povedený kousek jen lehce vadí svíravost.

Schöne Nase mit Eiche und tropischen Früchten. Der Geschmack schön würzig rostig würde ich sagen. Relative ausgewogen. Eine Ecke Schokolade sollte drin sein. Durchaus schmackhafter rum den ich weiterempfehlen kann. In der Nachverkostung konnte er sich leicht verbessern. Schönes Aroma.

Quite different from the rest of MBR. More fruity with typical coconut, vanilla and brown sugar well known from Barbados, but enhanced with spices and woodiness form Trinidad with a just a punch of overripe banana from Jamaica. Overall, an easy-to-drink but still tasty and satisfying release that shows a more-fruity side than the previous version. And, if anyone wants to ask, it is not dull at all, but maybe less unique than the rest of MBR’s.

15/03/25: tasted @ Brussels Rhum Festival. Note: I was experiencing severe palate fatigue. First time tasting one of the Master Blender's releases. The list of rums in this blend is quite impressive and I liked it quite a bit. I'm curious for the other yearly releases.

Markedly different direction! Less caramel, molasses, heavy notes. Much more fruity and light. Really good as well!

So on the nose at first a lot of Barbados (Foursquare notes) glue/polish, fruity. On the palate, initially ester/fruity, then after a while in the glass light rubber and dirty/dark notes, dried fruit. All in all, the 2024 makes quite a young impression. Personally, it didn't quite pick me up, I was expecting a little more complexity.