Matusalem Solera 7 40%
Tasted: Nov 2012
The nose is simple, quite sweet and a bit spirit. Lightly oiled with a hint of dried fruit.
The palate is light and very vanilla’d with hints of dried fruit and banana. Soft and straightforward with a creamy but slightly bitter finish. It’s a mixer really.
Matusalem 15 year old Gran Reserva 40%
Tasted: Sept 2012
This was not what I was expecting. I was under the impression that Matusalem was a big, robust, sweet Rum in the El Dorado style, but it wasn’t! Initially the nose is very slightly spirity with plenty of sub-agricole/ grain-esque notes followed by hints of tobacco, liquorice and some dried fruit lingering at the edges. With time some sweet oak vanillins appear.
The palate is quite dry and again initially dominated by the sub-agricole/ sweet-floral grain character. Slowly it unwinds to show a pleasant complexity of sweet dried fruit – prune and sultana on the middle along with hints of pure vanilla pod. Quite elegant and again not what I was expecting. Good length with a woody tobacco leaf and peppery spice finish along with a light oak bitterness.
Matusalem Gran Reserva 15 year old 40%
Re-Tasted: Nov 2012
The nose is quite light and vanilla’d, very much like the Solera 7 but with more depth of sweet dried raisins along with a herbal edge. Very commercial in style with a late biscuit, burnt caramel note.
The palate is soft and slightly thin with a sub-agricole herbal note. The middle is quite oak dominated although some dried fruit creeps in. The finish is quite fresh and a little spirit with an almost grainy nip and a lightly bitter chocolate finish.
Whisky According to Chris Whiskyman 