Rolf Devinci

Three hundred years of tradition certainly deserves a review but it had to wait until the NSLC reinstated the blue labeled navy rum back upon it's listings. The famous British naval spirit is a blend of six Caribbean rums offered to sailors as a daily "tot" until 1970 is once again available hereabouts following the Admiralty's original recipe. Here is a promotional video explaining the naming and history of the rum in the Royal Navy... https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ak7-2KbrZjo A lovely rum it possesses a silky but spicy mouth feel with a nice balance of oak, caramel and a touch of vanilla. A hot finish best mitigated over ice or mixed with two parts water for the traditional grog allotment. Apparently it mixes very well with cola and in cocktails. At $36 CDN for a 750 ml bottle it is a nice buy for the chance to try the traditional rum of the British navy.

Picked up a 200 ml bottle of the 1749 original spirit dark rum at the Halifax seaport market this February morning. I'm always interested in trying different rums but especially anything distilled locally. Coldstream spirits are produced in Stewiacke Nova Scotia just down "the pave" from the port city. https://www.coldstreamclear.com/ I was intrigued upon reading the label....a young unaged rum that is smooth? "This unaged dark rum spirit is bold with subtle sweetness and smooth light notes of vanilla." Upon opening one notices the sweetness of the nose of the spirit - a candy like quality that reminds me a little of vanilla and cream soda, no doubt the result of the cane sugar/molasses used in it's distillation. In the glass the rum presents a nice dark copper with a good mouth feel but a definite burn in the finish....not unexpected for a young unaged rum. Over ice this is surprisingly smooth with the melt mellowing the finish but bringin