The column stenght fashion, initiated by Neisson and his superb « l’esprit », has been emulated in the world of rum for a few years with among other things Longueteau and his « genesis », A1710 and « la perle brutel » , Dillon, Bielle, Bologna and Montebello … I probably forget some, especially among independent bottlers.
For the best and sometimes the least good, this new category remains a niche sector, where only the most geeks of us dare to adventure there. Besides, the distilleries have understood this and the volumes are often very limited.
Personally, I am not a huge fan of this kind of product, although I recognize that it is often very interesting. This remains the purest form of distillation work in the end. But this is clearly not the kind of bottle in which we are going to instinctively pick at the time of the aperitif or the digestive.
So, when the La Favorite distillery announced to us last year that it will put column strenght on the market, I admit that I was not transcended by the news. I knew I would buy it, but that just because I really like the products from this friendly and authentic family distillery.
And when the imminent release is announced, two big surprises! The first comes from the label, superbly produced by Lucas Vallerie who is the author of a magnificent book « Cyparis, the prisoner of Saint Pierre« . Second news, it will be a blend of juice from the two Creole columns in place at the distillery … We will therefore be entitled to a Brut 2 Colonnes!
Limited to 1500 bottles, these will have literally been taken by storm by aficionados of the brand … and by the other ones who intend to resell them. The concern is that the price in mainland France was € 79, almost double that of the distillery!
Distilled in April 2019, these two rums will have been bottled in February 2020 at 73.2% after a long rest in stainless steel tanks … meanwhile, in June 2019, I had the great pleasure of tasting the two, always separated For the little story.
The copper column 
The second one 
The tasting with Franck
Color
It is a white rum, so it clearly draws towards farm milk …. I would say semi skimmed. 🙂
Nose
Bold, thick … we clearly feel a relatively generous and sweet rum compared to the 73% of the thing.
Cane sugar syrup enveloping a beautiful peppery mango, some citrus fruits including lime, sugar cane and some more peppery and earthy traces.
Really a very charming and fragrant nose, floral limit at times but in no case aggressive. It’s really impressive and we would stay there for hours!
Palate
Faced with a nose with such beautiful qualities, the desire to taste it is only greater … but beware, it’s still a tough thing 🙂
And there, indeed it is lively, very lively even! Alcohol is much more present than on the nose but with a long wait, it disappears anyway to leave us a relatively oily distillate, always on this peppery mango, this syrup and this impression of greed.
A small metallic side completes the tasting, with a touch of bitterness not disturbing at all.
My first impression was marked by this too much alcohol but 3 weeks after opening the bottle, I note that this rum will have greatly gained in roundness and fruity in fact.
I have much less this impression of sharpness in the mouth, it is much more pleasant and suddenly it reconciles me with him … because yes, I was clearly a little disappointed during this first head to head with him 🙂
Price
69€ (EU)
Conclusion
What can we say about this La Favorite except that it is beautiful and it smells terribly good … which is already very good!
The mouth, although gaining a lot over time, is not really at the level of the nose, but it remains a very beautiful moment of pure tasting.
For the small story, this white monstrously works well in ti punch too … and, heresy (?), with an ice cube 😉
Sad for the price, it’s really not given especially on our good old continent!
Score
85/100
