Banditti Club is an award-winning spiced rum from Glasgow Distillery Co. The spiced rum is their core release, although it wouldn’t be Glasgow Distillery without some experimental cask finishing… The distillery also has two limited-edition rums: Smoky Rogues and Port Cask Finish.
Banditti Club Rum is named after a group of rogues who used to hang out in Glasgow’s local public houses in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, singing, eating and generally causing havoc.
Glasgow rum history
Scotland, especially Glasgow, has a long history of rum.
When sailors introduced rum to the UK in the 17th century, the spirit spread very quickly across the island. A sugar revolution was taking over from tobacco, and therefore in the 17th and 18th centuries, many refineries started to emerge in Glasgow, with several housing rum distilleries.
There was even a drink known as Glasgow Sherbet, made with water, sugar and citrus from the West Indies, which very quickly changed to Glasgow Punch with the addition of Jamaican rum. For a long while, Glasgow’s leading trade focused on Caribbean products, such as rum, sugar and cotton.
Banditti Club Glasgow Spiced Rum
Banditti Club Spiced rum is made from freshly pressed sugar cane juice and distilled on the island of Madeira. Maturation takes place in Glasgow at the distillery, where they also add the spices. The rum is aged for 12 months in oak casks together with tropical fruits such as pineapple and orange as well as tonka beans, black pepper, star anise, cinnamon and more.
No sugar, colouring or other artificial ingredients are used. Banditti Club Glasgow Spiced Rum is bottled at 44% ABV.
Nose: Orange, something herbal and grassy, Christmas spices
Palate: Dried fruits such as raisins and prunes, Finnish cinnamon buns, cake coated with citrusy icing
Finish: Slightly drying, baking spices
The distillery recommends serving it with ginger beer or cola and a lime wedge. It also makes a great addition to Mai Tai.
Banditti Club Smoky Rogues Rum
This is a single-cask limited-edition Banditti Club Glasgow Spiced Rum. It is aged and spiced like the rum above, but instead of cutting it down with water, this one has spent another 18 months in a cask previously used for Glasgow 1770 Peated Single Malt. The cask brings a layer of smokiness into the spirit. Smoky Rogues is bottled at a higher ABV of 52.2%. Only 390 delicious bottles were made available.
Nose: Cardamom, sweet dough
Palate: Grassy peat, cinnamon, cardamom, slightly uncooked doughy buns, chai tea
Finish: Smoky tea leaves, grilled pineapple
I could have kept sipping this for ages. Very nice, balanced flavour profile and the touch of grassy peat really works well here. The distillery recommend cloudy apple juice as a mixer.
Banditti Club Rum Port Cask Finish
This award-winning limited-edition (974 bottles released) Banditti Club rum differs from the previous two as it is NOT spiced. First, the spirit is naturally fermented and distilled from fresh sugar cane juice on the island of Madeira. Next it is transferred into new heavily charred virgin oak barrels in Glasgow, before its secondary maturation in first-fill tawny port casks.
Banditti Club Port Cask Finish, 52.4% ABV, is recommended to be sipped neat, over ice or used in a cocktail, so basically the choice is yours. Although with its complex flavour profile from natural fermentation and the maturation period in these amazing casks, it really lends itself to sipping. A must-try!
Nose: Caramel sweetness, red cherry, blackberry
Palate: Spice, mint, cucumber freshness, blackcurrants, wine gums, not too sweet
Finish: More wine gums
Overall
It is no secret how much of a fan I am of Glasgow Distillery. I’ve previously enjoyed their unique whisky releases, from tequila casks to Sauternes. The distillery really showcases its signature secondary maturation skills again with these rums. No matter what the spirit, they can do it, and they do it well (check their gin range if you haven’t already).
It’s always sad when limited editions are so limited, although you really get to sample something truly exceptional if you can score a bottle. Luckily, the rum releases haven’t run out as fast as their whisky usually does, so make sure to get your bottles now from the distillery’s website. They really are worth it.
Disclaimer: Glasgow Distillery Co kindly gifted me samples of all three rums to try and review.
