Don Q Single Barrel 2005 is made from a single harvest (2005) and a single American white oak barrel. The cask chosen to be bottled as a vintage was carefully selected by the cellar master.
Nico's tasting notes
On the nose, it's an unvarnished rum, with great intensity and balance. The American oak delivers its faithful notes of white wood, toasted coconut, vanilla and salted butter caramel, with a hint of orange peel to finish us off. The presence is undeniable, and we really want to see what's next.
Aeration brings out the greediness, without overshadowing the rum's intensity. The aromas are concentrated into a compact mass that could have been put through a solvent, but there's still a real impression of solar density.
The attack on the palate is soft and supple, trying not to let all the wood's concentration explode. It works, because it spreads quietly. Without wave, without relief, the rum has brought us to a plateau of already respectable height. Coconut, wood, vanilla and caramel are all present, along with an orange peel soaked in coconut milk.
The finish shows a slight astringency, the toasting of the wood having given it a slightly grippy edge.
"Don Q shows us that there's more to the "Latina" tradition than lightness and sugar..."
François Simon Wawrzyniak
Small sample received as a gift. Tasty, fine rum.