Velier Foursquare Sassafras 2006

Foursquare has done it again. A nice intense and complex rum for those who like good rum. Wow. The nose is wonderful once rested for 15-20 minutes. Then you're almost overwhelmed by a nice bouquet of fruit and spices. In the back I find coconut and some charred wood. The palate doesn't disappoint considering the wonderful nose. Naturally sweet, lightly dry. Intense, balanced and complex all in one go..... Then you have fruit and spices followed by caramel and charred wood. The finish is very long and has plum and vanilla finishing with charred wood. Retasting today confirms it's a winner.

Equal parts varnish and tropical fruit, giving the nose a sense of balance. Lively and elegant, it reconciles opposites. A slight acetone gives it depth. On the palate, great elegance with mellow aromas. A vibrant, complex palate with noble bitters that give the rum character. The finish is long, and as soon as it's finished, you want to pour yourself another glass. The empty glass reveals a hint of dirt, as with the 2009. A very fine Foursquare, lively, elegant and deep.

Personally, too much wood and somewhat unbalanced.

Velier FS (+ a fee spected other contenders) blind cross tasting: Honestly, the results here were very close. The Belier bottlings display a very high quality thourgout the range. Triptych and Pleni came out on top for me closely followed by Destino. I was somewhat surprised, that Sassafras and 2006 came out rather at the bottom, while I enjoyed both very much on their own. Raconteur also quite low in the ranking with Principia clearly at the bottom.

Exciting tasting. And overall also very tasty, although for me not quite as tasty as viellicht the reputation of the Foursquare / Velier bottlings is. With the Triptych, the wood influence was much too dominant for me. Positive memories of children's chocolate came through. With the Patrimonio, associations on the nose of Indian korma and watermelon. But sharp and dry. Principa I found very awesome at first. Nice fruit components but still FS DNA. But on the finish, the alcohol is too biting. Sassafras pleases me well, but is clearly woody. Plenipotenzario stands out for me with complexity. Very cool. But the clear winner is the Destino. Fruity, harmonious, complex and very tasty! From my memory also a tick better than the 2006. Whether he is worth the money that you have to take today to hand, however, I doubt.

Amazingly good Foursquare!

Edit: Zum großen Crosstasting der Velier Abfüllungen haben sich noch der Swell und der Barbados 2006 Flag Series mit dazu geschmuggelt. Leider war es bis jetzt noch nicht möglich ein Sample vom 70th. zu bekommen. Im allgemeinen ist zu sagen dass es im Blindflug keine großen Unterschiede an der Nase gab. Beim Geschmack selber sind jedoch Unterschiede erkennbar. Nach meiner Meinung fallen aber drei deutlich aus der Reihe und bilden mit Abstand das Schlusslicht. Franconian Tasting Gang Leider ein wenig enttäuschend, wenn man schon mal den 2006er im Glas hatte. Danke @Flo1977 dass du 27,5m heim gelaufen bist um ihn extra zu holen. Aber irgendwas stimmt mit dem nicht, entweder war der zu lange offen oder er ist doch einfach gar nicht so gut.

A good Foursquare as we like them. The finish is of a superb greediness. A lot of pleasure but the woody and spicy flavors don't make it sickening. On the other hand the alcohol could be better integrated.

Extrem gefälliger breiter Cognac FS. Mir gefällt er super und hat sicher das größte Allrounder Potenzial. Auch für Einsteiger geeignet.

A foursquare masterpiece!

Grundsätzlich ein solider Foursquare mit einer angenehmen Aromatik. Das cognac aging oder finish bringt zusätzliche Holz Aromen und Tannine mit ein. Der Alkohol könnte ein tick besser integriert sein. Ansonsten findet sich hier eine tolle Aromatik nach gerösteten Haselnüssen, gebranntem Zucker und Eichenholz, sowie dunkler Schokolade und verkohltem Leder. Könnte aber insgesamt deutlich ausgewogener sein.

8,7:On the nose, the first impression we get is mostly woody with roasted notes like nuts, caramel, spices as cinnamon and some coconut. A molasses is vegetal, we scent a glue. On aeration, it becomes more interesting with burnt sugar, caramelized, dried fruits like apricots, raisins, citrus, there are tobacco and black tea, pleasantly balancing the notes. 9:On the palate, the attack is delicious with charred wood notes like caramel, nuts, pastry and tasty with dried fruits as on the nose, toasted coconut and citrus. It is very round and full-bodied. Resting brings some dirty notes, smokiness, bacon, baking spices and ripe mango. 8,9:The finish is long, dry and also tasty with charred wood notes, hazelnut is quite strong, chocolate, some leather, vanilla joins and prunes, other notes remain as on the palate. Edit:26.7.25

So, now also VSGB No.1 opened and the much-noticed Sassafras in the glass. With Foursquare and especially Barbados in general, I could never get excited so far. However, the Sassafras convinces me with a quite multilayered and complex taste, which provides mainly dark and spicy notes. The 15 years and probably especially the 11 in the cognac barrel make themselves quite noticeable. All in all in really good, but for me not great rum. Nevertheless, my highlight so far from Barbados.

A real sure bet among the Foursquare wines bottled in recent years. The nose is full and greedy, with sweet, pastry notes (caramel, toffee), chocolate and a fruity roundness marked by dried and exotic fruits. The woodiness, marked by polish, and the spices bring a fine balance to a nose that gains in aroma and intensity with age. The attack on the palate is opulent, rich with spices and wood, balanced by notes of sugar, caramel and pastry. Chocolate, dried fruit and coconut add roundness. The alcohol is well integrated, but its warmth is somewhat noticeable on the palate. The finish is long and warm, with cooked caramel, toffee, sweet spices, chilli, toasted oak, dark chocolate and hazelnut. Dried fruit and coconut linger on the palate. A fine selection by Velier, well-structured and well worth the release price.

Really nice Foursquare nose, unfortunately the alcohol stings neat.In the mouth then very spicy and much too woody.From the taste profile really great, but the quality is compromised by alcohol and neat wood.