This past winter, my manager, a fellow r(h)um and cocktail nerd traveled to Martinique in an attempt to escape the hellish landscape that is the Midwest in late January/ early February. A time where sunlight seems to no longer exist and purpose has lost its place in life…
Anywho!
The week before his departure he asked me if there was anything in particular, I wanted to keep an eye for. The answer to that question is always “yes”, but having just come off the holiday season, moving back to Chicago from Nashville, and trying to run down my home collection I tried to make his courtesy all but impossible.
I left him with my criteria: no more than $30 USD and something that is not accessible to us at work. You’d think this would not leave him with many, if any options, but damn did he come through with this gem:
Rhum JM’s Joyau Macouba Limited Edition.
A very unique bottling of a blanc Agricole rhum distilled in 2017. This rhum was chosen by Rhum JM’s tasting committee for its unique aromatic qualities that were felt to best represent the terroir and character that JM tries to embody. To maintain as much of that character as possible, the rhum is proofed down to 51.8% abv before bottling.
45,000 bottles were made available worldwide with a retail cost of around $25 USD. If you are fortunate enough to come across one of these, snag it immediately.
APPEARANCE
The rhum itself is water clear with a slight oil sheen to it when held against the light. The bottle is in particular quite attractive. The pattern motif reminds me of the De Stijl artwork design. The different squares each represent aspects of JM. The red to signify the roofing of the distillery, the white squares feature silhouettes of the distillery and bridge that the crosses the spring waters that flow from Mount Pelee, and what I assume are the leaves of sugarcane in green.
AROMA
The herbaceous aroma of sugarcane jumps from the bottle the moment you unscrew the cap. In a Glencairn, the perfume of herbs gets tamed by the scent of raw sugar. There’s a sweet acid note reminiscent of aloe vera in there as well. As my hand warms up the rhum in my glass, its fruit character starts to move forward. The sweet woody aroma of pineapple core comes forward followed by the concentrated sweetness of canned peaches. The sweetness slowly gives way to more of the terroir influences of the island. Maritime, chlorophyll and an odd chemically dish soap note rounds out the nose.
There is a LOT going on here. It is easy to understand why this was bottled for its aromatic quality as JM suggests.
PALATE
The flavors are not as interesting as the aroma on this rhum, but still has something to offer. Initially, the palate on the first sip is quite flat. For a split second, you are left wondering where all of the terroir-driven features of the nose disappeared to. Then, the flavor erupts in a wave of raw character. Nothing complex, but lines up exactly with what you would taste if you even chewed on a piece of sugarcane. Harmony of the bitter pulp of the stalk and a sort of chalky mineral quality.
BODY
The body is at most medium. You can feel the heft of the higher abv and oils of the distillate but quickly goes dry.
FINISH
As the rhum continues to give a dry feeling on the tongue, the mineral character continues. It is offset by a slightly floral perfume character. Something in the way of jasmine and pea blossom. Subtle white pepper and chili pepper hides out under all of this before getting lost to the return of bitter cane pulp.
OVERALL
This is quite fun for a blanc Agricole and one of the few I found quite entertaining to sip on. Too many tend to toe the line of neutral for the sake of being used in mixed drinks. While the palate wasn’t the most complex for rhum (time and a barrel are used for a reason) the aroma off this keeps you engaged and brings a new dimension of summer each time you bring the glass to your face.
