Cotswolds Hearts & Crafts No.3

To conclude my exploration of Cotswolds expressions, I'm sampling their distillery exclusive Rum cask single malt. It was aged in rejuvenated French oak ex-red wine casks, seasoned with Caribbean rum, and bottled at 55.6% ABV. The aroma begins with bananas foster, passion fruit, mango, and light leather, then dark chocolate-covered espresso beans, pipe tobacco, and toasted coconut. This is followed by charred pineapple rings, dried apricots, and strawberry jam, transitioning to light baking spices and polished oak with a moderate alcohol burn. The taste offers a medium mouthfeel, starting with creamy tropical fruits before a moderate bitter and sour spice that gradually fades to plantain chips, grapefruit, and mango. Next comes a spicy mocha, pipe tobacco, and toasted coconut, followed by charred pineapple rings, dried apricots, and tart cherries. It finishes with light baking spices, moderate black pepper, and over-brewed black tea, with a medium alcohol burn. The finish is short, featuring plantain chips, charred pineapple rings, tart cherries, cocoa nibs, moderate black pepper, and over-brewed black tea. I held this one back for last, as I'm usually a big fan of rum flavors and anticipated that the combination of Cotswolds' tropical fruit notes with a rum influence would yield an intense and rich tropical fruit dram, enhanced by light red berries from the wine casks. However, instead of a creamy, sweet dram, this leans more towards a sour and astringent flavor profile with moderate spice, and the finish is quite tart and bitter. Overall, it's still a pleasant dram, but it didn't end up being my favorite in the series, which turned out to be a tie between the Founders Choice and the Peated cask.