Review by: The Auditor
Review #1091; Rum #418
S.B.S stands for Single Barrel Selection and is a wing of 1423, a spirits group that goes around selecting and bottling (and finishing rums). This rum was distilled at Le Galion Distillery from Molasses on a column still, then aged in a port cask for an unknown amount of time before being bottled at a high proof.
Distillery: Le Galion
Bottler: S.B.S 1423
Region: Martinique
Still: Column Still
ABV: 56.2%
Nose: Orange, Brown Sugar, Brine, Slight Glue, Figs
Palate: Medium oily mouthfeel, Brine, Glue, Figs, Orange Peel, Brown Sugar, Acetone
Finish: Medium length finish, Brine, Glue, Orange Peel, Black Tea, Acetone
Conclusion: At first I thought this was working, there were nice fruit notes, those lovely brine soup esque notes you get from unaged Le Galion. I was like yeah, finally, a heavy finish from SBS that works for me. But as I sat with it and sipped on it, a really strong Acetone and Heavy bitter note started to pop up and dominate everything for me. It lingered for while after as sip, the acetone forming an bad backbone. These really young bottlings from SBS still fail to click for me. Taking high ester rums and just sticking them in any cask just because sounds like a fun idea on paper, but so far for me they haven’t really worked out. Let’s keep the Le Galion rum unaged.
Final Score: 72
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 