Habitation Velier Mount Gay 2011 - 52.3% 70cl

Velier was founded by Casimir Chaix in Genoa in 1947 as a wine and spirits importer and distributor. By the 1980s they were still a small family-company with less than ten staff.

This all changed in 1986 when it was purchased by Luca Gargano, a former brand ambassador for Saint James who was at the time still in his twenties.

Under his direction, they selected their first single cask whiskies in 1992, and their first rum in 1996. In the decades that followed, Velier have gone on to become one of the most collectible brands in the industry, and Gargano has positioned them as the one of the foremost authorities and bottlers of rum anywhere in the world.

More than just a bottler of rum, Luca Gargano is considered a visionary in the cane spirits industry, even developing his own classification for different styles of rum in 2015. Many distilleries have since adopted this. Among the classifications is "pure single rum," which denotes a spirit produced on pot stills at a single distillery. This Habitation Velier range is a celebration of these rums "which best expresses the raw material and the know-how of the distiller."

This is a 2011 vintage from Mount Gay, bottled in 2020 using rum originally intended for the Mount Gilboa brand. Mount Gilboa was introduced by Frank Ward in 2006, and takes its name from the original name of the plantation.

The brand was unusual for Bajan rum in that it is a pure single rum (produced using only pot stills), and unusual for rum in general in that it is triple distilled

When Frank Ward sold his shares in Mount Gay to Remy Cointreau in 2014, it ended his family's 100 year ownership of the distillery, as well as production of Mount Gilboa.

These barrels were bought by Velier in the same year, who initially bottled them as "Last Ward" in homage to the former Mount Gay dynasty. This release is a vatting of the 6 barrels, all fully aged in the tropics.

Nose: Complex and fruity aroma with vanilla, spices, marzipan, dried fruit, and barrel notes.

Palate: Rich, woody and spicy flavors with nuances of nutmeg, caramel, and a fruity profile.

Finish: A lingering finish featuring wood, fruits, and a touch of tobacco.