Not anymore.
Traveller's 1 Barrel earned our very first rotten review. This was quite unexpected for a rum that had won a couple of awards (more about that in our review), and that at least a few posters seemed to like. Here's a couple exerpts from a VERY long review and commentary:
My review wasn't much better, and we felt obligated to rate 1 Belize a lowly "4" on a ten point scale:Sue Sea: 1 Barrel comes in a plain Jane, screw top bottle. The label is amateurish, with faux gold leaf lettering, "1 Barrel", set against an elementary school art class barrel. The rum itself is a lighter gold - the overall impression is not the least impressive. It really screams "inexpensive".
And it is.
1 Barrel presents with a strong maple aroma, with tones of butterscotch, honey and caramel. Like a truck stop pecan pie, or what we used to call (artificial) maple-flavored "bear claws". There is a background of reed that works to sour the maple a bit. Still, the maple is dominant and carried throughout the tasting. The body is smooth and coating, and the taste is entirely consistent. The palate opens with maple candy sweetness, with clove emerging mid-palate. The finish is longer than Zaya - I'd call it a medium finish, with both clove and white pepper, quite warming.
Overall, I found 1 Barrel to be of one primary, overpowering note - of cheap, overdone maple flavoring. Ugh!
Pretty bad.I can't really disagree with Sue Sea (and her talented waiter son - who has a keen palate as well). 1 Barrel's color is a clear but not lustrous light gold with scary, thick sugar legs. Its aroma is clear, strong and unmistakeable: a pungent, very deep maple-flavored syrup, with tones of almond and over a background of sour leather. The taste is sadly consistent with an overpowering maple flavor, leading to a very warming hot, peppery finish.
I must be honest about Traveller's 1 Barrel. It is the lowest rated rum we have ever had the misfortune of buying and/or tasting. It is so bad I would hesitate even giving it away to another unsuspecting soul.
This rum is a very young, continuous distilled, and by their own admission a (heavily ) flavored product. Still this rum was entered in competitions as either a dark rum, or as a traditional gold (unflavored) product. This casts doubt on both the producer and the promoters of these largely commercial events.
This rum is a perfect example of "Rums Gone Wild" - those that have gone over the top in secretly doctoring their rums with any number of additives and flavorings. It is the poster rum for our "Twiggie's Tie Dye Rum" section: young, inexpensive, adulterated and promoted otherwise.
My apologies to all. Our reviews are otherwise quite positive. The complete, very long review and related commentary is (here).