If there is something which brings me joy, its new and unknown rum in advent calendar. Even the location now is not much mainstream, I dont know many rums from Ecuador. So lets get to this discovery.
Industrias Romero company was established in 1906 by grandfather of todays management, its still in hand of Romero family. From the beginning it was distilling company, it also helped with newly created Ecuador liquors production. This brand was created in 2020, called Romero & Sons it shoud be premium small batch rum brand. Made as were rums made 100 years ago, so fermentation, distillation and aging are basically the same as when the company begin with rum making.
The only rum I can see on market and also the only one on official website is Romero & Sons 9 yo. It should be blend of 9 years old cane juice rum and extra old mollases rum. Each year only 1200 bottles is made and they are 44 % ABV strong. But we are not tasting it. Instead we have here “secret” rum, Romero & Sons Solera Especial. It should be the only solera of this brand. It consists of rums aged from 6 to 15 years and is quite strong for common blend with 48 % ABV.
Nose is not strong at the beginning, its quite closed. I can smell some grassiness and light staleness. And maybe little of coconut. But with enough time, the smell opens. It grows in strength, some fruit and spiciness appears. Soft and old fruits with hints of esters and volatility. Its like fruit brandy with spices. Its unusuall but interesting. Nose stays light, but has some strength and strange aromatics.
In taste there is now agricole style, there is lots of grassiness. It is also really not sweet and kind of harsh. It is also closed, it needs time to open. There is the same fruit along with coconut, then some hints of chocolate and citruses. Most of it grapefruits. Soem other fruits I can taste in background. The taste is juicy and spicy, its full and pleasantly strong.
Aftertaste is full of this already tasted fruit and fruit brandy. There is lots of juicy fruits and citruses, but very low sweetness. It is full and long, with some hints of honey.
This is very pleasant surprise. Rum with some esters and some agricole style. It really needs time to open and more for getting into it, but after that I am getting very good rum. This brand and bottle I would like to explore more.
