Uitvlugt The Duchess Guyana 27 Years Old Cask 5 50.1% 1993

Professional reviews

Serge Valentin (91)

Whiskyfun:

I’ve often noticed that rums that would display lovely photographs or paintings, or drawings of animals, especially birds, were better than the others. Why that? Because of a better care for Nature? Aesthetics? Good sentiments?

Colour: gold.

Nose: I love them all. Kerosene, olive brine, liquorice, lime, tar and bergamots, that just is a perfect combination in my book. What’s more, the 27 years have rounded it off, without taking any fiery aromas away. With water: liquorice tar brine olives paraffin mint eucalyptus.

Mouth (neat): yes, excellent. Some kind of mentholated and liquorice-ised (what?) hay spirit (ever tried to let ferment and distil hay? You should!) Lovely salty liquorice, bits of anchovies and olives, and then even more liquorice. I just adore liquorice, I’m glad Haribo have revived an old French brand called ‘Zan’ – but why am I telling you this? With water: a bigger saltiness and more assorted citrus. Some tobacco too, liquorice marshmallows, even oysters…

Finish: rather long and perfect.

Comments: perfect but the sample was too small. May we get a double magnum next time? I-am-joking.

Gal Granov (91)

Another Rum from the Duchess, and you know I love most of those. I am currently on my 2nd botle of their Barbados 18 and loving it.

This new one comes from quite a different distillery in Guyana by the unpronounceable name of Uitvlugt ( good luck in trying to say that, but you can try saying “owt-flut”).. distilled in 1993 and bottled in 2020, cask #5, bottled at 50.1% and donning the image of a hummingbird.


Nose: Starts quite briny with canned olives in brine, licorice and a certain sweetness, rubber and eucalyptus along with wood spices (pepper, nutmeg, ginger), and some earthy funk/tar alongside ginger cookies and bay leaf.

Palate: bitter smokey and spicy, with black pepper/ginger on the first wave of sensations, also dusty, more licorice and eucalyptus extract, bitter olives in brine, salt, and more licorice, and hessian.

Finish: dry, pepper, minty, earthy, camphor, and kerosene as well, very austere, but also very complex and ‘dark’, the spices and smoke with the dry notes create a lovely mix.

Conclusion: A very complex and different animal this one is! it does try to be likable. No sweetness at all, if you’re looking for that in a Rum – this ain’t your style. But, on the other hand, it’s very rewarding, very complex and very very interesting, and worthy of a long sniffing and sipping session. Very good!

Words of Whisky (90)

Malt Fascination.com:

A little while ago I got another awesome rum sample from Best of Wines, but I waited a little while to sit down for it and give it the attention it deserves.

It’s another one in The Duchess’ Hummingbird series with the awesome labels by Hans Dillesse. He’s been doing a lot of label work lately, also for ‘They Inspired’ by Michiel Wigman.

Anyway, Uitvlugt, a distillery from Guyana that uses a Port Mourant still. As it turns out that’s a wooden still that looks like what’s shown on the picture. I don’t have much experience with this kind of distillate, and would love to do head-to-heads between this and a copper pot still, just to see where the main differences are.

The experience I have had with a wooden still were with Lost Spirits weird and rather hideous whiskies. However, I do think they work better in warmer climates.

Sniff:
Slight hints of glue and molasses. Very complex with no one scent taking the lead. Leather, nutmeg and clove. Dried papaya.

Sip:
Some heat from the alcohol, with a bitterness too. Fruity, sugary sweetness. Drief mango and papaya. Some baking spices, nutmeg and clove. Leathery, molasses.

Swallow:
The finish is a bit brighter, with an added hint of pink peppercorns, leather. A bit more funky.
I keep being surprised by the breadth of flavors in various rums. This one is no exception and does something quite different to other bottlings by The Duchess, let alone a random other distillery.

I love the combination of the peppercorns and the dried papaya, and I love it even more that it’s a complex dram with not one flavor or scent leading the way.

Highly recommended!

BOW (90)

Port Mourant Still