John Watling’s Distillery Buena Vista Rum

"Unfortunately just too much young distillate. But potential"

"John Watling's Buena Vista from John Watling's Distillery in the Bahamas. And it's a distillery in name only, as there's no still (a pot still has reportedly been ordered from Forsyth, but it's taking a long time to arrive 🧐). And yes, there are no active distilleries in the Bahamas! It's rare to find an island in the Caribbean without a distillery. Previously (1965-2009), there was Bacardi with its 27 million liters/year (300,000F storage) 😱. But that was before. No info on where the rum is distilled or where the cane comes from, but we do know that the molasses comes from hand-cut sugar cane. Pretty stingy on the info! Aged for 5 years in Ex-Bourbon casks in the cellars of the 1789 building that served as the setting for Casino Royal. The name is a tribute to the pious British pirate. And I think that's all there is to this rum, because the nose is non-existent (although we'll say a little woody-caramel) and the palate is no better (or even worse)! There are a few vanilla-caramel notes, and let's not even talk about the finish (it disappears as quickly as it appears). Rum obtained via a colleague on holiday in the Bahamas for the sum of 65€, I understand better why it's not to be found on our European shelves. Big disappointment, the balance of the bottle will be used for mixology. But fortunately, future molasses releases will raise the bar."