Refined Vices

Rum review: Diplomatico Rum Blanco (Venezuela)

Tatu Kaarlas — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:22:00 +0000

Diplomático Rum Blanco is the latest addition to the Diplomático rum range, first introduced at the UK RumFest in 2008. It is a white rum, distilled 4 times in copper pot stills and aged for 6 years in white oak barrels before going through a five time carbon filtration to remove any trace of colour from the spirit.

Diplomático Rum Blanco comes in a simple yet refined, tall, thick bottomed bottle with pumpkin coloured labelling and text that advertise the rum as ”Ultra Premium Imported Rum" and "Ultra smooth and Slow Aged Rare Rums of the Caribbean."

The synthetic cork is protected by a copper coloured metal seal and in the centre of the bottle can be found a familiar stamp, seen on all Diplomático bottles, depicting Juancho Nieto Melendez.

Decadence and Debauchery in Foggy London Town Part II

Tatu Kaarlas — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:07:00 +0000

So it has been almost a year since I wrote the first part of Decadence and Debauchery in Foggy London Town and now that the 2009 Rum Fest is almost here I thought now might be a good time to write about my experience of the 2008 UK Rum Fest and what to expect when you go there.

With two days behind touring museums, eating fine food and drinking many an exotic booze and cocktail it was now time for the main event we were all here for; The UK Rum Fest, Europe’s biggest rum festival hosted by Ian Burrell with hundreds of rums to try, rum master classes, seminars, cocktail competitions and more!

Matthew and I had been the last two men standing at the Portobello Star on the previous night and had agreed to meet again the next morning for a nice greasy breakfast before we'd venture towards the Rum Fest.

The Whisky Show 2009

Tatu Kaarlas — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 03:25:00 +0000

The Ultimate Tasting Experience

The Whisky Show is a new luxury whisky event that aims to showcase the finest examples of the distiller’s art to city professionals and fine whisky consumers alike. The inaugural Whisky Show will take place in London’s prestigious Guildhall on 6th-7th November 2009.

Focusing on premium bottlings above each brand’s standard expression (longer-aged whisky and/or special bottlings), The Whisky Show will offer a fantastic opportunity to the knowledgeable connoisseur and potential investor, as well as the passionate whisky fan wanting to learn more.

Rum review: Ron Los Valientes 20 Años Añejo Reserva Especial (Mexico)

Tatu Kaarlas — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 11:27:00 +0000

The third and the oldest of the three rums, Ron Los Valientes 20 Años Añejo Reserva Especial carries the signature of the Cellar Master to indicate his devotion and pride of the product he has nurtured for so long in the cellars of Veracruz.

The bottling date is displayed and the bottles are hand numbered; with the number 022 and the year 2007 in my case.

Rum review: Ron Los Valientes 15 Años Añejo Especial (Mexico)

Tatu Kaarlas — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 08:22:00 +0000

As far as I understand, Ron Los Valientes 15 Años Añejo Especial is made using the same methods as the 10 year old the only difference being the blend of rums that has been aged a tad longer in the White Oak casks.

Being pleased with the 10 year old Los Valientes I was quite eager to taste the older 15 year old Los Valientes rum and see what it has to offer, not to mention the 20 year old Los Valientes that I will review later.

The design of the bottle is exactly the same, apart from the different age statement and different colour of the seal. One other detail in the bottles I haven't mentioned is the map showing the coastline of eastern Mexico where Veracruz is situated.

Rum review: Ron Los Valientes 10 Años (Mexico)

Tatu Kaarlas — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:14:00 +0000

México, a nation of many fine Tequilas, Mezcal, Sotol and apparently rum too. Admittedly, spirits made from the harvested Agave plant are the first things I think of, along with jalapeños and many other things that México brings to mind, rum being somewhere further down the road.

Licores Veracruz, however, appears to have been producing rum in México for over 50 years producing labels such as Ron Mocambo, Rum Peñuela and the newly launched private label Ron Los Valientes, which offers rums ranging from 10, 15 and 20 years old.

Not surprisingly the Mexican company Licores Veracruz also produces Tequila and Mezcal as well as other spirits and liquors. The origins of the company go back to 1945 when Jose Villanueva invested 60,000 Mexican pesos in a liquor company owned by an elderly gentleman named Ramon Gutierrez.

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