Review 199: Mount Gay Eclipse

This is intended to be a whisky review site, however I can't help but review different spirits from time to time. High quality rum is generally less expensive than high quality whisky nowadays, so I like to pick it up on occasion. So, for the sake of variety and economy, here is another rum review!

Mount Gay Eclipse

Color: Amber +1

ABV: 40%

Aroma Neat:
Raisins, Smyrna Figs, Dried Dates, Blueberry Jam (I promise!), Cherry Cough Syrup, Creamy Bananas, Cooked Oatmeal, Sweet Pears/Apples (generally estery fruitiness), Heavy Syrup, Dr Pepper (that's 23 notes right there!), Cinnamon.

Heaps of preserved fruit off the top. The labeling (gotta read the labels) leads me to believe that this rum is constructed from only pot still new-make. This story seems to check out because of the immense amount fruit/ester aromas on the nose. We are approaching Jamaican levels of esters here (Mount Gay is in Barbados). Column still product would be "cleaner," but less characterful.

Aroma with Water:
Apples, Lemon (slightly), Lime (very slightly), Salty, Light Brown Sugar, Thin Honey, Vanilla Frosting, Ozone.

Much lighter and brighter than neat. Almost margarita like, weird... I would probably not add water to this rum in the future, because it drowns easily. It is interesting to see the transformation, though.


Taste Neat:
Dried Blueberries, Oily Smoke (a bit like two-stroke exhaust), Brown Sugar/Maple Sugar Candy, Wood Sugars, Molasses, Vegemite (as a slight, but dark, saltiness), Dr Pepper, Vanilla (slightly), Dark Cigars.

Surprisingly, blueberry appears again. This is not a note I often encounter, which is too bad. Aside from that, this has a relatively standard rum palate with a puff of smokiness, dark sugary goodness, and a trace of salt. Not bad, but the slightly more wild, and still quite young, pot still spirit results in some prickle and roughness on the tongue.  
 
Taste with Water:
Dried Blueberries, Starbucks Coffee (overroasted, a bit bitter), Cola/Dr Pepper, Muscovado Sugar, Dark and Sweet Cigar Tobacco, Sweet Barrel Char, Motor Oil, Smoked Salt. 

Unlike the nose, this is pretty much unchanged from neat. Except for being more watery and bitter.

 
Finish:
Barrel Char (slightly ashy/bitter), Burning Oil, Burnt Sugar, Copper/Metallic.

Noticeable aura of alcohol is present in a relatively short finish. A few extra years of age would fix this heat and add some duration.The char was sweet on the palate, but has an ashy bitterness here. Too bad.
 
Conclusion:
Surprisingly fruity on the nose. It took a while for this rum to open up to it's full potential, though. After opening this and having a very drams, leave the bottle alone for a few weeks and then come back to it. You'll be rewarded.

Pretty standard rum palate, with one nice surprise. Certainly veers towards youthful roughness.

Short finish. Not great, but not terrible. A little hot. 

Rating: 75/100

Unfortunately, I can't say that this is one of the better rums out there. I appreciate the attempt Mount Gay made in trying to market a bigger, more robust, and more flavorful pot still rum. This is the right move and it will result in growing rum's popularity. However, you can't rush a pot still rum (or whiskey, or any spirit for that matter). They take time and that is why we don't see to many at lower price tiers like the Eclipse occupies. Give me an Eclipse 8 year old and I think we'd have a real winner on out hands. Plenty of potential.

I haven't tasted to many rums, but I have reviewed one other offering from Mount Gay. That offering was the Extra Old, which is about twice the price of Eclipse. Eclipse seems to be a different animal entirely from Mount Gay Extra Old, which was much spicier. May be some French oak was used to mature that one?

If you're interested, feel free to check out the other rums I've reviewed. Appleton 12 from Jamaica is my favorite so far and can still be found for a very reasonable price.

Josh