Barbosa Grogue and Rivers Royal Grenadian Rum reviews

Another weekend, another couple of stunningly good unaged rums brought in by the Velier folks. Our current pair comes fresh to US retail shops from Cape Verde in the Atlantic (a few hundred miles west of Senegal) and Grenada in the far south of the Caribbean; both are basically made from cane juice, both come off of pot stills; both are, well, a bit more pricey than you may be used to via Haiti, Martinique, etc.. So how do they fare? Stats:
Barbosa Amado & Vicente Grogue Cape Verde Single Rum (Monte Negro, Santiago, Cabo Verde; wild-fermented, pot distilled black cane juice; lot M201710000; 45% ABV), 85+/100
Rivers Royale Grenadian Rum (River Antoine distillery, St. Patrick's, Grenada; wild-fermented, pot distilled cane juice/syrup; bottled circa 2020; 69% ABV), 90/100
Don't let its score fool you, the grogue is brilliantly well-composed and - I think - set to become quite a weapon among mixologists and blenders in the coming years. Its only problem is that, in this context, it has no hope of outshining the massive primeval bomb sitting next to it. Rivers presents itself almost as a kind of ur-rum, something that would feel just as much at home (and not) in Trelawny Parish as Saint-Michel-de-l'Atalaye. If you already know your hardcore unaged rums then you've had a lot of these flavors before, just not together, just not quite this... well, this *strong*. Good God, is Rivers strong.
Guest starring a bottle of Diamond 151 Overproof.

[@stopdrinkingpurple8774]

I've just tried a sample of Rivers... This is YUUUUUGE, indeed !!! Your review, as flamboyant as it is, does not lie. This rum is not cheap, but I need two bottles right now.

[@differentspirits4157]

It is just ginormous.

[@Walking_Ears]

I mentioned a few months ago that I’d be visiting Cape Verde. Today’s my last full day of the trip and it’s been a lot of fun. I had the chance to try some Grogue, though a lot of bars don’t even list a distillery name on the menus and just call it “grogue.” One place served it out of a plastic water bottle with the label peeled off lol. It was great though. the island of Santo Antao has a lot of distilleries since a lot of sugarcane is grown there. They have unaged (“Grogue nova”) and aged for a short-ish time (“Grogue velha”) options as well as some others that I didn’t investigate much (some for instance that are infused after the fact with other flavors to make more of a liqueur). I’ll say that the one “velha” style that I tried didn’t really click for me much, and the unaged versions were a lot tastier. Maybe I just had a bad batch but it felt like the aging added some slightly off notes.

[@differentspirits4157]

I'm kind of unbelievably jealous. 😂

[@Walking_Ears]

I've got a trip to Cape Verde this summer and it inspired me to see if it's been a stop on your "world tour." Looking forward to trying some grogue this summer!

[@differentspirits4157]

Have a great trip! Tell me what to look out for. 😁

[@rumtikihomebar7301]

Will be have a bottle of the Rivers tomorrow- and will reply back- I can’t wait to try after this review - oh my!

[@differentspirits4157]

Have fun! Keep lit matches away. :D

[@rumtikihomebar7301]

@@differentspirits4157 That’s funny man! Yeah that is crazy good juice ! wow!

[@smthreet21]

So glad you brought up the wp 502 i think it was the closest comparison i could find. Rivers is such a beast of a rum i swear i tasted it an hour after i sipped it when i first cracked it.

[@differentspirits4157]

It is sort of uncanny how molassy Rivers can seem sometimes. The long fermentation? Boiling the cane juice? What the heck is doing that?

[@smthreet21]

@@differentspirits4157 my best guess is a sugar cane molasses a la clairin le rocher just wild fermented like crazy. I think your assumption has to be close

[@stopdrinkingpurple8774]

if you didn't see it yet: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gGfFdZJ4pqiFY5Y&ab_channel=MyLife%2COurWorld

[@joshuaevans5983]

Yum, grogue. I bought a bottle of the vulcao and have been enjoying it. Definitely get those savory, briny, olive-y notes. Light, but in a good way. Maybe a great example of something well suited for its purpose and an argument against universal 100 point scoring, though I haven’t had the Rivers. I can’t help but think it’s doing exactly what it’s supposed to do when watching some videos of people making it. Seems to fit in perfectly with the community. I think your review hints at that (albeit indirectly). It’s just hard when comparing to the belter of a rum that Rivers seems to be.

[@differentspirits4157]

Indeed. I'd love to try more of them!!

[@TheCalvados]

There is a bottle of Grogue at 57% now its amazing, i dont know if its in the US yet, but it is in Denmark 😁

[@iyannabest6272]

70% is the legal export for rivers, if you come to Grenada then you can get up to 85-90%.

[@differentspirits4157]

brb, checking airline prices...

[@doopdapps1088]

​@@differentspirits4157😂😂😂

[@Quiet1-y9x]

You had me at "peppery mud".

[@differentspirits4157]

I might be overusing "mud" as a tasting note, I find myself throwing it in constantly. 😅

[@umaarunkumar8742]

Great review ! I felt the Rivers was like Sajous on steroids. Very similar profile.

[@differentspirits4157]

Thanks! For me Sajous has a floral side which Rivers is lacking. Albeit replacing it with good old fashioned cane funk and, as you suggest, maybe a big dose of trenbolone...

[@JJG338]

Barbosa Grogue - "Back to the Barbosa, on the nose... There's more of a trash can rot... You know, like you should've taken your kitchen trash out the day before, in the summer, and it's getting a little stinky... But nice!". SOLD!

[@differentspirits4157]

What can I say, I like trash can rums.

[@ericamig3922]

Rivers Royal Grenadian Rum is the smoothest raw white rum I've run across. Amazing hooch.

[@differentspirits4157]

"Smooth" isn't the word I'd use, but goddamn is it good! 😂

[@ericamig3922]

@@differentspirits4157 I am afraid Rum Fire has burned out the weaker buds. RRGR is tasty.

[@differentspirits4157]

@@ericamig3922 Rum Fire has a way of doing that. 😂

[@Gunzee]

I was given an open bottle by my in laws, they'd been using it to clean. The smell is similar to isopropanol (bad memories) so I get why they did that. Anyway my brother kept telling me throw it away, don't drink it. From the cheap looking label to the damaged cap; sealed with plenty of sellotape it looked dodgy. I had a neat single, wasn't that great. Aftertaste of food, olives almost. So I mixed as suggested, ice and water and it was quite nice. Easy to drink more than one is supposed to. Now I use it similar to bitters, a dash in a gin and tonic. PS, I impressed myself, even with my bad taste I could taste the olives. I don't taste all that over stuff. Maybe a bad chemical floral thing. I can't believe the price, rather a few bottles of Beefeater or Greysons (Aldi special) than this.

[@differentspirits4157]

I don't think the world has ever had a great spirit that wasn't at one point considered rotgut suitable only for the desperately drunk or for cleaning bathrooms. Like, if you'd told the Scots of the 1870s that the world's rich would one day be buying malt whisky in expensive decanters, they would have laughed at you.

[@MrPsiman]

I just bought a Rivers today on sale for $64.99 and that is why I bought it. $80 regular price is insane for unaged rum. Any bottlers doing an aged Rivers ? I also got a Hampden Estates for $64.99 and I had to get it because that will be the cheapest it will ever be again because it got big exposure by Ralfy and now all of their stuff is scarce or the price has been hiked. K&L is getting a Worthy Park official bottling of high ester at CS. I don't know how old it is. Won't be here until probably May is what they said. I hope the 14 year pick with Martin Cate is good. It's mid level esters is what K&L said.

[@differentspirits4157]

What's scary is, for the quality (and the scarcity) I think eighty bucks is actually pretty decent QPR by the current standards of the spirit world. Which says a lot about the mind-blowing QPR of some of the other unaged rums out there. (Aged Rivers may land one of these days, but I imagine it'll be 10+ years before we arrive at one that matches the naked one in quality.)

[@prestonw3878]

I'm trying to find a bottle of the Rivers. Sounds awesome lol!

[@differentspirits4157]

Yeah it's awesome. It sounds like this is going to be the only international release for awhile, but there should still be a bunch of bottles out there...

[@prestonw3878]

@differentspirits4157 interesting.. so if I find a bottle I better buy! Cheers

[@ReadySetRum]

At $55 and $70 for those two rums, I did not pick them up. I got to draw the line somewhere.

[@differentspirits4157]

I understand. But try the Rivers at least once. Seriously! :D

[@ReadySetRum]

@@differentspirits4157 I will take your advice. The Competitor to Rivers in Grenada is called Clarke's Court, and I found it in Florida for $30. So paying $70 for Rivers because Velier got it, is a hard sell.

[@MrPsiman]

Rhum Clement CS store picks at K&L are the best deal in rum. Bourbon cask over 3 years old and really dark and the color looks like it could be 7 or more years old. $28.99 on closeout. it's the real CS at 56.6%ABV and not the 44%ABV ones that most places picks are and priced at $80-ish.

[@differentspirits4157]

That's a fair price! (I confess to not having been impressed with my own local Clement pick - well, certainly not as impressed as by Rivers etc..)

[@keyfinder257]

I'm thinking I need to get Rivers. Maybe a tad like Caroni

[@differentspirits4157]

Very very different, but absolutely worth trying...

[@keyfinder257]

@@differentspirits4157 yeah there is nothing like Caroni. It's over. I give up. I'm a scotch guy anyhow. Have you tried Mac-Talla Oloroso Limited Edition Whisky? I'm thinking of getting a bottle of that.

[@yankchef4067]

How do you think this compares to say clairin sajous or an unaged hampden expression? More similar to Haiti or trewlany

[@differentspirits4157]

The Rivers, you mean? It's kind of its own thing - as I think I say here, it comes off almost as a predecessor to both styles.

[@yankchef4067]

@@differentspirits4157 ah I see, the only other thing I have had that is even sort of comparable was the clairin vaval. It's definitely an intense experience

[@benvieira3895]

Between Rivers or some of the clairins, is there one you'd recommend over the other for someone who hasn't tried anything in this super wild category? I've loved all the other cane rums I've tried so far so I want to see what this stuff is all about. In my case price isn't really much a factor, the rivers is currently on sale at my local store so it's actually cheaper than the clairins atm

[@differentspirits4157]

If Rivers is cheaper, buy the Rivers! Take it slow, give yourself a few sessions to adjust to the madness (water helps), and go back for the clairins if you survive. Best of luck to you, sir! 😁

[@benvieira3895]

@differentspirits4157 Picked up the bottle today and wow. I don't know exactly what I was expecting, but all I know is that it's one of the greatest spirits I've ever tried. I see why you gave it a 90. Thanks for putting me onto this, it's just opened up a whole new world of rums I need to explore!

[@zedeon4541]

how would you rate them for daiquiri use?

[@differentspirits4157]

Both of these will daiq like crazy. By its nature the Rivers one will be more of a bomb and the Barbosa one will be more subtle, but I could see going for either one depending on the situation.

[@MrPsiman]

is the Hamilton Zombie rum now in Chicago ? Bears fans need something to get them through their horrible football team.

[@differentspirits4157]

Yes, but I've bought so much rum that right now I can't really justify it. It'll probably end up a knife fight between Zombie and Worthy Park 109...

[@MrPsiman]

and there is the new Diamond 151 that is supposed to be the best of the Demerara 151's

[@ExtendedPachiderm]

channel name change or am i misremembering?

[@differentspirits4157]

Nope, you are correct! I up and added a brand a few months back. In a Mellow Corn review of all things... kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZrUlJ6wrKlpers

[@jawshu]

@@differentspirits4157 hope you stocked up on Mellow Corn before the Heaven Hill strike! For me, it’s an easy picket line to stay on the right side of - Elijah Craig Barrel Proof is hard to find reasonably priced in NYC anyway. Wild Turkey, on the other hand… that’d be tough

[@differentspirits4157]

@@jawshu Family-owned distillery or not, suing your own employees when they want to renegotiate a crappy contract - a crappy contract, offered during the biggest bourbon boom ever! - is a bad look. (I should really do a Heaven Hill-ternatives video, if not a full-blown bourbon-ternatives session...)