Planteray Mister Fogg Navy Rum
$34.50
British Navy Rum, and modern "Navy Rum" blends, holds a special place of fascination for both lovers of spirits and readers of history. As far back as 1655, and until 1970, sailors in the British Navy were issued rations of rum. This began as an occasional replacement for beer for sailors in the Caribbean, as the beer would go bad, and rum was readily available in the islands and places that were at the time, British colonies - especially Guyana, Trinidad, Jamaica, and Barbados. Eventually, by the mid-1700s, the rum ration had spread throughout the British navy as a daily "tot", an institution that was both beloved and infamous until it was done away with on "Black Tot Day", July 31, 1970.
The rum itself that made up these "Navy Rum" blends varied over time, but almost always, and especially by the 20th century, favored a robust base of rum from Guyana and Trinidad, with varying amounts of rums from Barbados and Jamaica, and rarely from elsewhere. The rums were shipped to England relatively young, where they were blended in large open air wooden vats for around two years, both mellowing and subtly aging in the process, with the intention stated as being to throw off some of the "fiery" qualities, or harshness. Then, once blended and casked for use on ships, it was proofed to "Navy Proof", somewhere between 54 and 57% (a hotly contested topic for modern blends) - a strength that guaranteed it could soak the gunpowder if there was spillage and not prevent it from lighting. The result of all of this is a robust, blended, high proof style of rum that continues to influence blenders everywhere, and enchant drinkers.
Planteray has decided to dip their timbers in the waters of Navy Rum with their newest blend, Mister Fogg Navy Rum. It is named for Michael Fogg, a Navy Veteran who later served as a veritable historian of Navy Rum knowledge, whose work formed much of the basis for Planteray's formulation. With this history, Planteray (with the additional assistance of internet's "Cocktail Wonk" Matt Pietrek) came up with a blend of 43% Barbados rum, 36% Trinidad rum, 17% Guyana rum, and 4% Jamaica rum. From both pot and column stills, these rums were all aged for a short period of time in their home countries before being brought to France, where they were re-casked in used barrels and then vatted in large open wooden vats for up to three years. For the proof, they ended up right near the middle of the disputed Navy Rum proof, at 55.7% abv.
The result is a big, bold, but easy to drink rum, with a nose of dried fruit, orange peel, chocolate, vanilla, plum, and burnt caramel. The palate carries a smoked molasses character, with ripe fruit, rich spice, and a lingering sweetness on the finish. It certainly holds its own against the classic modern Navy Blends, while also making a distinct argument in its own favor as a new Naval power to be reckoned with.