Established in 1923 on the site of the sugar factory for which it was named, Caroni was a key ingredient of British Navy rations, where it’s famous high ester ‘Heavy’ rums help to make up the signature flavour. Sadly, with the decline of the Trinidadian sugar industry, the Islands distillers became more and more dependent upon imported molasses, making distilling less and less economical. The writing then, was already on the wall when in 2001 the Trinidadian government sold a 49% share in the holding company to Angostura. Caroni was shuttered in 2002 and a behemoth of flavour was lost to the world.

Thankfully, in 2004, Luca Gargano discovered the ossuary of Caroni’s warehouses filled with barrels of the legendary heavy rum quietly ageing. Since then we have seen a number of outstanding releases, proving increasingly popular with collectors and drinkers alike.

One of a handful of single cask bottlings produced in in the latter half of the 2010s, this particular example was distilled in 1996 and matured 22 years prior to bottling in 2018 for Shinanoya and BAR LAMP.

One of 210 bottles.