Angostura 1824 - opinions?

[Jason Perlow]

While in DC last weekend I picked up 2 bottles of this very fine rum from Trinidad/Tobago, a hand bottled, hand casked 12 year old for $50 per bottle. I tried some last night and it is phenomenal, very similar to Appleton 12-year old but perhaps a bit more refined. Comes in a very nice bottle too.

http://www.angostura.com/1824.htm

Anyone else try this stuff? The liquor store in NW DC I bought it from only got in 6 bottles total and said it was relatively hard to get. Angostura also has an 8 year, the 1919, but this store didnt have any.

Interestingly enough this is the same company that makes Angostura Bitters.

[Dan Smith]

Greetings,

I have not tried the 1824, but a did try a bottle of the 5 year old dark.  The dark is an okay rum, sweet, but has an artificial aftertaste that I really dislike (sort of like the after taste from Myers Original).  I would like to try the 1824 or the 1919 some day.  Do you find that the 1824 has a sickening arftifical after taste?  I like the Appleton 12 Years Old.  If your stating that it's a little more refined, then it should be a rum that I like.

They just recently changed the name of their rum from Royal Oak to Angostura.  Same rum, different label.

The owner of Angostura has a chain of Liquor Stores in South Florida.

Cheers

[Jason Perlow]

No, I don't think it has an aftertaste. Its a very well made rum.

[Dan Smith]

Glad to hear.  I will look for the 1824 on my next business trip to Florida.  Which happens to be in two weeks.  Thanks for the tip.

Dan

[Ed Hamilton]

Glad to hear 1824 is getting some distribution. $50 is less than they were selling that rum for last year. This rum is a real departure for Angostura, much more complex flavor than the other rums from this distillery which generally bottles very light rums. I thought some of the spice flavors seemed a little artifical and out of character but it is good rum.

[dhoffman]

I liked this rum but thought it a little one dimensonial with a strong vanilla flavor. Here in CA it's very hard to find at retail and I've not seen it cheaper than $71/bottle which IMHO is just too much.

[Mika J]

Hello all,

I am rather curios as to the opinions of other who may have tasted this rum. Personally I had VERY high expectations, then as I tasted it for the first time, it did not really thrill me as say "El Dorado 15yo" did - it was not similarly instantly captivating or as enjoyable. What it WAS, I could only describe as immense and truly complex.

Having said all that, I was sipping my bottle of Angostura 1824 slowly for a period of around six months, occasionally in the company of others, and I must say it was fascinating to hear them similarly trying to describe its character and nature. "An ultimate cigar rum" said one. "Complex to the point of being difficult", said another.

My final personal assessment of it is that it is one of the ultimately great rums I have ever tasted. No, it isnt as easily enjoyable as say the El Dorado 15 yo. It is a very complex personality. "Ogres are like onions - they have layers", said the loveable Shrek the Ogre in the computer animated movie. Well, this is an OGRE of rum - it has LAYERS, and it takes a while to get to know it and love it.

I remember originally discussing this rum with the personnel at Angostura as I tasted it for the first time: Some of their comments later on struck me as being so very true and to the point!

They said "It wouldn't have made any sense to try and imitate any rum already in the market". True - why try and make a copy even if you could (and I do think that Angostura, with their massive distilling capability and knowledge COULD.

Another thing said was that they had wanted to create something really different, and complex. Again, this rum fits the bill in my humble opinion - it is both.

Third statement was that it MUST carry house style - again, if you sample the whole selection of Angostura rums, the house style is present throughout the range and I am not implying that all their rums taste the same.

After the six months I was personally ready to say that this rum is one of the most remarkable I have come across. As such, I am very curious as to how other rum connoisseurs' have taken to the spirit.

Sincerely,

Mika J

mika.jansson@nokia.com

[Jason Perlow]

Its a solid rum, I have 2 bottles. We've discussed it here before. As Ed says, Its defintitely a major departure from other rums Angostura has made before, which are more commercial.

edit: merged with previous discussion

[Mika J]

Hello,

Sorry if it is an old topic - I could not find it with the search.

Some very interesting commentary below about it - Trinidadian rums are by tradition somewhat light, this is true. I did personally find that Angostura's 1824 represented actually the house style quite well - there was a definite link to some of their other products, such as the Ferdi's (Angostura bought Fernandes distillers long time ago) or Royal Oak, both local brands sold still in Trinidad & Tobago I believe. But 1824 is far more complex and interesting I feel.

Incidentally, the majority of Angostura ltd. was owned by Bacardi until 1999 if I recall correct; This made it not possible to truly market their own brand of rums internationally, and most of the rum went as bulk to bacardi for blending (also to Seagrams). Bacardi continues to be one of the large customers buying some of the incredible 50 million litres of rum produced annually by Angostura.

Ed Hamilton mentions that in his opinion some of the spicy flavours (I have found a lot of orange peel for example) seem a little artificial; this raises to me an interesting point - would this in your opinion suggest that some flavouring or such has somehow been added to the spirit for this effect?

Angostura's newer rums such as 1824 or 1919 are still not readily available in Europe, which is really a pity.

Sincerely,

Mika J

mika.jansson@nokia.com

[Ed Hamilton]

Angostura distilled and bottled Bacardi for years but that isn't why they didn't sell their products internationally. The simple reason was that they made so much rum for other people that they didn't need to do a good job of marketing their own rums. Expertise was another issue and of course the product. They needed something different to sell and in the last few years they've begun to do it. I have no doubt you'll see more Angostura rums in the years to come. This has been a truly international company for years. Is there anyone who hasn't seen Angostura Bitters? And do you know how much alcohol is in the famous Bitters?

[Rapping Bartender]

The Angostura 1824 isn.t a bad rum. I definately agree with Ed that it has a very "spice induced finish", which is probably due to some sort of fruit/spice added to the barrels while aging. 7 out of 10 for taste. 8 out of 10 for packaging.

[anil]

Angostura distilled and bottled Bacardi for years but that isn't why they didn't sell their products internationally. ....

Ah !!! Wasn't aware of that !! Last week waiting for a delayed flight at CDG (Paris airport) I spotted a bottle of 12 year old "reserve" of Cuban rum (forgot the name of the brand)

What is the history behind the use of "reserve" in Rums ?

[Ed Hamilton]

I just posted a new topic "reserve."

[Mika J]

Hello,

At least while visiting Angostura distillery, the representatives of the company told me that one of the agreements with the Bacardi ownership of majority of Angostura stock (up until 1999 I believe it was) was that Angostura did not have certain freedoms and rights to try and push their own brands at the time internationally. It is also true that neither did they have to do this - selling bulk rum and blending for other brands, with an amazing 50 million litres produce annually, was a business lucrative enough. It seems however that ambitions grew and with switch of ownership they saw an opportunity to sell internationally and market their own brand.

Interestingly enough, a few years later what we still see in Europe is only some of their older (Trinidad-based) brands such as Old Oak (and Royal Oak occasionally). The new Angostura brand rums are not available here.

Br,

Mika Jansson

mika.jansson@nokia.com

[ctgm]

Just had some Angostura 1919 (8yo) and thought that it was really quite nice. Quite a sweet palate with a moderately oaky finish. I think that once the bottle is finshed I will replace it.

[Sam Salmon]

I was just gazing lovingly on the empty 1824 bottle I have saved from the one bottle I brought back from T&T last Feb-then I clicked on this Forum-life is strange....

I paid about $C35 for it @ Piarco POS duty free-a bargain if ever there was one-I agree about the layers of flavour it was superb.