Cockspur Old Gold shows the reddish golden color of polished copper. The bouquet brings sweet sugar cane, then aromas of caramel, slightly vegetal mild residual esters (probably contributed by the small amount of pot still distillate aded to this otherwise column0-distilled rum). Well-oaked buttery vanilla follows, then wet leather and lesser notes of allspice, nutmeg and tropical fruit (banana, mango). Old Gold is really more complex on the nose than you’d expect for the price and position it holds in Cockspur’s portfolio. The initial taste is delivered on a medium-heavy, slightly dry but buttery smooth body with sweet like caramel and milk chocolate; the flavors slightly more homogeneous than the aromas, but they transition quite well from sniffing to sipping. The medium length finish tapers off with a nice caramel sweetness.

Cockspur Rum was established in 1884. Cockspur rums are produced by the West Indies Rum Distillery (WIRD), located in Spring Garden just north of Bridgetown is idyllically situated. Bordered on the West by a beach overlooking the calm eastern Caribbean Sea with a beautiful white sand beach, home to the Cockspur Beach Club, where many a tourist has learned to love Bajan rum. Across the street from the distillery is a water production plant situated on top of a coral filtered spring, which ensures an endless supply of pure spring water for making fine rum. It’s well worth a visit.

Cockspur employs two types of stills: a four column continuous still for high volume output of light rum; and two pot stills of smaller output that produce heavier, more full-bodied, aromatic and deeply flavorful rums. Cockspur rums are matured in American oak barrels previously used for aging bourbon.