<![CDATA[RumJourney.com - Wicked Dolphin Spiced]]>

I discovered Wicked Dolphin Silver rum during the blind tasting at the 2013 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival. I was impressed with the rum and made a note to track it down at the event. Later in the year I had the pleasure of visiting their distillery and tasting room based in Cape Coral Florida.

This company has a lot of positive things in the works and is definitely on my list of ones to watch. In 2014 they have rolled out a new spiced rum using locally grown Florida ingredients. It is currently available in locations across central and southern Florida. Check their website for availability.

Appearance/Presentation

I was happy to see they kept their distinctive award winning 750 ml bottle design for their second offering. The label was adapted from the original with plenty of gold and red highlights. Each bottle is labeled with the batch number and mine is from batch number 1. This copper rum has a nice solid orange hue in the bottle and in the glass. Swirling the glass reveals fast moving legs that cling to its side and take some time to dissipate.

Nose

Pouring the rum in the glass unleashes a tangy orange aroma that filled the air. It took the aroma a few minutes to settle, the orange note remained becoming the baseline, while honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, a light hint of anise tickled the nose.

Palate

Sipping the rum revealed a strong upfront hit of spices: anise, cinnamon and allspice followed by a light kiss of honey and orange across the tongue. After those flavors faded it was immediately followed by the caramel of the rum then faded in a lightly acidic finish.

Review

When the representatives of Wicked Dolphin first spoke of producing a spiced product they set out with the goal of making sure it tasted like nothing else in the market and had a signature Florida flair about it. I think this complex little tongue teaser achieved that goal for them. The flavor profile plays naturally with anything citrus based and is enjoyable with cola or lemon-lime soda. The orange note is a nice added nuance to any cocktail requiring spiced rums. If you happen to find yourself in a Florida store that carries Wicked Dolphin, I recommend taking a bottle home to enjoy.

This review first appeared in Got Rum? magazine.