Foursquare’s 1998 Vintage rum shows a brilliant golden amber color - the kind of  appearance you expect from barrel aging only, as in; no caramel coloring added.  The aromas are even more appealing, yet  less penetrating and forward than found in many premium aged Bajan rums.  Perfectly proportioned, no single scent overwhelms, and each is released in multiple layers if you take time to explore them.  You’ll first find caramelized sugar, vanilla, oak, and smokey char.  1998 produces a slight must, pleasantly smelling like the inside of a rum barrel aging building.  Hints of cocoa, some dried fruit (apricot, plum, currants) and nice earthy vegetal qualities (cane and fresh tobacco) with just a bit of spice (cinnamon and clove) are also apparent.  All provide accurate clues to the careful distillation and aging behind this exquisite spirit.  “Oh my,” I said aloud after my initial taste:  “subtle beauty”.  Everything one senses in the aromas is delicately mirrored in the flavors.  Foursquare’s Vintage 1998 rum is so incredibly well balanced that its complex individual flavors stand together like a well rehearsed chorus.  A medium weight body delivers the flavors squarely and evenly across the breadth and length of the tongue, such that all of your taste buds seem to experience layers of flavors in seamless sequence.  Though not immediate nor hurried, 1998 just spreads as if from the center and arrives at all corners simultaneously.  Beauty runs deep in the finish, which is slightly sweet, the layers of flavor continuing their timed release as you contemplate your next sip, while a slight residual sweetness lingers on your tongue.

Foursquare bears it’s talents with humble pride.  Nothing  is hidden from visitors as they can roam the immaculate distillery on a self-guided tour; rum making in plain view.  The package itself reflects the Foursquare’s work ethic and Richard’s persona.  The unassuming bottle’s front label is adorned only with facts more akin to an aging barrels’ contents tag than a marketing sticker.  I suspect that is precisely what Mr. Seale desired, i.e.: to let the quality of the product speak for itself, shining through its simple clear glass bottle.

For a fellow RumXP’s well-traveled opinion on Bajan rum in general, and the Foursquare distillery in particular, it’s rum, and owner, see Robert Burr’s story here.