Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum

It's super woody and rich on the nose with some of that dirty socks flavor that usually comes with whiskey, but it blends into the fireworks notes. The palate has a surprising amount of tartness, which actually quickly gives it an overpowering rye flavor. There's also some nice spice - it gets to be a bit to harsh, but the notes of baking spices are nice. The tartness and bitterness really do take over though with an unpleasant effect. Taking a large sip reveals no apparent added sugar and a lot of smoke and Earth. There are some hints of brown sugar and tropical fruits throughout, but they are not strong. It's an OK drink but has these weird tequila elements (like mild mint) that I'm not a fan of. The fruit sometimes really leaps out and that is quite nice. The problem is the bitter tartness. If that were cut back this could be a great rum. As it is, this is a bit on the extreme side. Some added water mellows it out a bit but also makes it more generic. Yeah, it has some extra banana, but none of the flavors really come home. This isn't a sipper though it seems like it might want to be. I can definitely imagine rugged sailors drinking this. The cocoa and molasses blend a bit but the result stays bitter. There's a ton of leather but it's clearly too much for a whiskey. This is kind of interesting, but it isn't great. The finish is quite nice and that's a real selling point There are some off notes and the good notes are not terribly exciting although they are balanced and decently complex (with water added). It's just decent enough to border on sippable without being actively bad (in non-sweet circumstances), but it's never going to be a great to drink. This is somehow continually interesting and tasty, even with water. The nose is rich and strong with a lot of smoke and fireworks. It also has some squash and umami scents. There are tart and sweet smells that remind me of barbeque sauce. The barbeque sauce definitely contains garlic and might also contain soy sauce. It reminds me of a stronger version of Helios Teeda, but more forceful with some of the more traditional smoke, fireworks, and rum notes. The nose is complex and interesting, though questionably balanced and only good if you're looking for its odd profile. The palate comes with a full mouthfeel and it has quite an oily flavor mixed with the fireworks and smoke. There is a tropical fruitiness dancing in the background. That bit of fruitiness is also a little floral and comes with some vanilla. It's incredibly rich with a lot of bitterness bordering on iodine. It's incredibly funky. I appreciate it, though I wish that some of the flavors (especially the fruit and some sort of less salty, bitter richness) stood out more. It's incredibly smoky, with a bit more char than I'd like. Still, it's great as a dark rum and is impressively smooth. The tropical fruits give it life and sweetness, though they are hard to identify specifically. There's definitely no added sugar here. It's very good, but if really love a version with less char. Some beefiness does come in, along with garlic, on the finish. With water added, the smoke and fireworks are still very present, but they are less aggressive. The fruit stands out for a tad longer and the umami is quite present. A bit of Sichuan peppercorn makes it in too oddly enough. I quite like this, even for sipping, and the price is good. It's a weird rum though. With a lot of water added, plenty of smoke still comes through and so does a bit of fruit, so it seems great for cocktails.

I am fairly inexperienced with rum, but so far this is fav. Im still trying to het over the “rum is not always overly sweet” presumption i had in my mind, especially when i taste this. Is this a sweet rum? Surely it is, but it is much dryer than you would expect, which is a great thing because it leaves room for other flavors. First of all even tho, this is 57%, it does not need more than a touch of water to it, otherwise it looses its dense-ness i like so much about it. Tbh, im not a big waterer myself, you might be more comfortably adding more water Nose: Like with all cask-strengh spirit, you have to be patient. Initially the high esther aromas covered basically everything else - especially right after opening - and it was almost like i was smelling glue with just a hint of sweetness in it. After leaving it to breathe and open up, finally the more fruity elements came forward, much more on the 2nd and 3rd glass, then on the first. (Bear in mind i did not have the 3 glasses in a row, but with 3-4 days apart). The nose is mostly occupied by the high ester almost glue like nose, this is not a typical “overripe banana” hogo, this is far stronger. The most accureta description i can give you about the fruit elements is that, it is like a fruit punch bowl, where you put a bunch of fruits like cannes pineapples, apples, cherries, sour cherries, brambles together. Also a faint brown sugar note. Palate: almost these same things translate to the palate too, but the glue like nose doesnt come forward to much in the palate, molasses and oak sweetness and bitterness comes forward (yes go ahead and buy some molasses, taste it, it has a very unique flavor, and you will understand what is the base of most of your rums, also there is a strong bitter, rotting funk to it, very interesting that it comes through the rum). And if you were lucky to hit the sweet spot, the amount of fruit punch bowl/fruit salad mix sweetness will literally make your mouth water, and it will leave a nice barrel tannines after it. Overall, for the price i can get it, it is a very favourable rum, i mostly enjoy it neat, little water added to it, but i did make a Mai Tai out of this one and it was the best god damn Mai Tai i have ever had. Dont want to over rate this one, since i barely tasted any rums yet. I am very keen on trying a Hampden 8 and see how that delivers the fruitiness with the intense hogo

Recommended to me, I picked this up expecting an adventure. I consider myself a rum novice, so my notes may not be particularly helpful, but I am sharing them anyway. Popping the cork is like opening the door of a food dehydrator making banana chips. Pour some in a glass, admire the classy gold on blue label, notice the smell of cooking bananas, with butter, and brown sugar, and cloves, and molasses. Ok, people were not exaggerating when they promised this is potent. The smells are bold, mouth watering, and carried by an ethanol punch that lets you know right off that this isn’t some watered down rum flavored vodka. It is big, but not overly refined, not that it is aiming to be. 18/20 The first sip is not what I was expecting, it is hot, but not as hot as I thought it would be, but it’s not sweet at all on this first taste. Lots of magic marker notes, something slightly Scotch-like, and the funk/hogo is here. First impression isn’t as strong a showing as the smell. 23/30 Sip a bit more, admire the warmth … ginger, nutmeg, cloves, bananas, burnt sugar, sweet molasses, something metallic. There is a lot to love here, but there is this note that is metallic and unpleasant. I get why many people say this is perfect for mixing, I can imagine it making amazing cocktails, being fantastic with some ice, and a little bit of pretty much anything, maybe even just opening up the bottle for a few weeks will fix it. As it is, I love some parts, but overall there’s a lot that’s just not there for me. 18/25 On the experience and presentation, a nice bottle, really nice label, wonderful smell, and several really good points, but some parts that let me down too. 15/20 I keep five points for entirely subjective assignment, and I’ll give one, bringing the total score to: 75/100 I will be reassessing this in a few weeks.

Naso funky di banana matura e mango, bocca con innesco secco e avvolgente di legno, quasi astringente, conferme di hogo con banana e frutta esotica matura, ma anche pepe e liquirizia, con una costante ma nascosta vena melassosa che segue tutto il palato e lo accompagna leggermente amarostica. Ultima sospensione di liquirizia e melassa densa ma non zuccherina. Nonostante la giovane eta' un Jamaicano vero, di carattere secco e verticale, ad un prezzo incredibile che tradisce la diffusa convinzione della sua propensione ai cocktail, quando molto sommessamente ritengo che sia un Hampden di sicura eleganza. Non aspettatevi le vernici organiche e la complessita' di un Long Pond, ma e' uno splendido rum che meriterebbe di riposare una decina di anni in botti ex-sherry. Sip and dream islands. Funky nose of ripe banana and mango, mouth with dry and enveloping priming of wood, almost astringent, confirmation of hogo with banana and ripe exotic fruit, but also pepper and licorice, with a constant but hidden melass vein that follows the whole palate and accompanies slightly amarostica. Last suspension of liquorice and thick but not sugary molasses. Despite the young age, a true Jamaican, with a dry and vertical character, at an incredible price that betrays the widespread belief of his propensity for cocktails, when I very softly believe that it is a Hampden of sure elegance. Do not expect the organic paints and the complexity of a Long Pond, but it is a splendid rum that deserves to rest for ten years in ex-sherry barrels. Sip and dream islands.

Nose: Banana cake, carrot cake, baking spices (cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom), grapefruit peel and blood orange, raspberry marmalade, some ripe apple medley and other orchard fruit (peach, ripe pear), crispy baked butter cookies sprinkled with brown sugar, a hint of ginger, red hots candy, Jamaican hogo funk, Asian rice spice (an almost savoury blend of spices), sourdough bread, some smoked meat and barrel char, a hint of mixed red berries (strawberries, sweet cranberries, raspberries) and almost a sherry type sweetness alongside it, a hint of paint, some candied lemon peeks through, slight pineapple, honey, chocolate liquor (kahlua), sweet tea, vanilla, medium chocolate, slight woody sweetness, caramel, woody malty sugar, palm dates Palate: Sweet and sour yet slightly dry grape wine with a hint of paint (Hogo funk), some green apple,smoked brisket and charred wood, the alcohol presents itself as spicy chillies and peppercorns with some barrel char bitterness and green paprika, then some mixed fruits (apples, cherries, mango, pear and peach), hint of lemon, a hint of sweet tea, some peach marmalade and brown sugar Finish: Carrot cake and baking spices (cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom), some smoked paprika, banana and tart mango, slight bonfire smokiness, a hint of candied caramel covered red apple

Nose - rotten banana, charred orange peel, molasses, spoiled cream, leather, rubber, lemon, pineapple, caramel, lime, brown sugar, sweet vegetal notes, polished wood, tangy BBQ sauce, high ethanol burn. Taste - rancid orange oil, molasses, ginger, chili pepper, overripe banana, bitter herbal notes, decomposing grass, leather, tobacco, sour apple, honey, charcoal, grape, lemon, pineapple, clove, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium long with citrus oil, overripe banana, chili pepper, and molasses flavors. After a brief hiatus that involved a spirituous trip to Kentucky for the bourbon festival, I’m back to rum reviewing. And this is one spicy meatball. It certainly brings the funk, with strong citrus oils, rotting banana, various spoiling tropical fruits, and decomposing foliage. This is very youthful and alcoholic on the nose and palate, almost too much to be enjoyable without dilution. It’s better suited to mixing, but this isn’t a terrible sipper on its own. It’s slightly reminiscent of Springbank’s rotting, citrusy quality. Overall it’s decent, but I would be interested in recommendations for more refined offerings with a similar profile.