What kind of an influence will a pineapple rum cask have on Irish Whiskey? You’ve come to the right place to found out, as I will be reviewing the Teeling Pineapple Rum Cask today. Finished in Planterey’s highly popular Stiggins Fancy Pineapple Rum casks (though at the time this whisky was bottled the company was still called Plantation) it seems like a match made in heaven.
But for me personally, rum finished have been really hit or miss. I’ve had an amazing Caroni finished Caol Ila once from Hogshead Imports, but most of the times it feels like the rum adds a layer that just doesn’t belong to whisky. Or at least, that’s my experience. But I’m always happy to try some more rum finished drams, to see if they can change my mind!
Tasting Notes – Teeling Pineapple Rum Cask
ABV: 49,2% (98,4 proof)
Age: 7 years
Distillery: Teeling
Chill-filtered: No
Natural Colour: Yes
Nose:
Grilled pineapple with a hefty amount of brown sugar sprinkled on top. That’s the first thing that comes to mind when nosing this dram. Beyond that note I’m also finding caramelised apples, cinnamon, crushed vanilla pods, and just a hint of cereal. In other words, there’s plenty of complexity.
Palate:
More classic rum notes appear on the palate, with brown sugar, rum raisins, and obviously more pineapple taking center stage. There’s some doughy notes in here as well though, which reminds me of cinnamon rolls for some reason. Cinnamon rolls infused with candied pineapple chunks. Not a bad note to get.
Finish:
The finish is rather short and rather thin an tannic. Some oatmeal notes, oak shavings, and a popsicle stick note linger for a short while before dissipating altogether. All-in-all the finish is a bit of a let down, mainly because I was hoping those lovely flavours of the palate would remain for some time.
Verdict:
I tend not to like rum finishes, but this one was rather okay with me. The rum flavours really dominated the nose and palate, making this more a rum experience than a whisky experience though. I still think the rum and whisky flavours don’t play that nicely together, but seeing how little influence the whisky seems to have here, it’s not too disjointed this time around. All-in-all this is a very pleasant dram, though it does fall flat in the finish. But it’s definitely an okay dram for the price!
