Manutea VO is a Tahitian gem, a pure cane juice rum from an exceptional terroir. The cane is grown, harvested and pressed on the island of Tahaa, and the juice is fermented on site. It is then transported on schooners to Moorea, where the distillery is located. Here, it is distilled in a beautiful hybrid still/column that produces a typical rum from the endemic O Tahiti cane variety.
This rum is aged in bourbon and banyuls casks for 3 years. At the end of this period, and after an annual 7% angels' share, these rums are blended to form this cuvée de rhum vieux.
Nico's tasting notes
On the nose, we find the licorice and aniseed notes of Polynesian cane, with a patina of wood and hints of very ripe grapes. The vegetal is then on a par with the fruit, in a profile that's both round and highly expressive, with an air of chlorophyll-filled, mentholated aromatics.
With aeration, the rum becomes even more harmonious, and the cane finishes assimilating all these woody and vinous influences. The result is a true perfume, concentrated, rounded and vegetal.
The palate is just as aromatic as the nose, with a hint of pepper marking the arrival of aniseed and licorice-scented cane juice. The woodiness then begins to melt and flesh out the whole, and we find ourselves with a touch of vanilla on our lips. Green, velvety aromas follow, like so many facets of sugar cane bathed in grape juice.
The finish is very aniseed and licorice-like, so much so that you even have the sensation of having tasted a pastis.
"An aged rum that takes the house's identity even further, with typical gourmand grape notes..."
