Rare New Release: Rolling Fork 17-Year Trinidad Rum

We have another fantastic release from Turner Wathen and Jordan Morris. The team behind Rolling Fork and Bourbon de Luxe. We're thrilled to share the follow up to last year's Rum of the Year and Best in Show in the non-whiskey category of the Ascot Awards, a 17-Year Trinidad Rum. Ten Cane is a ghost distiller from Trinidad that was shutdown in 2015.

 Ten Cane was a unique rum project. It aimed to treat rum like with the same respect typically reserved for fine Cognacs. Launched in 2005 by Moët Hennessy, the goal was clear. Create a rum that highlighted the true essence of sugarcane, rather than just using molasses. Fresh cane was hand-cut in Trinidad and pressed right away. The majority of Ten Cane rum comes from the juice, not from sugar by-products (molasses). That alone put it closer to the world of Agricole rum than the mainstream Caribbean style.

But the process leaned even further into the Cognac playbook. The rum fermented slowly. Then, it was double distilled in small copper pot stills, which are often used for French brandy. Aging also took cues from that tradition, incorporating French oak and ex-Cognac casks to build structure and elegance. Rolling Fork took this rum one step further by finishing in a 15-year Kentucky wheated bourbon cask. The goal wasn’t to make rum—it was to elevate it into a luxury sipping spirit.

In many ways, Ten Cane was ahead of its time. Today, the spirits world celebrates transparency, raw materials, and terroir. Back then, the market wasn’t quite ready for a premium rum built around those ideas. Thankfully, there are independent bottlers like Rolling Fork to preserve the legacy of this special rum.

 
Rolling Fork The Lost Cask Collection 17-Year Ten Cane Rum
 
The nose opens with fresh campfire, torched crème brûlée top, sorghum, and mature oak, alongside brighter notes of dehydrated pineapple, mango, and subtle florals before saturated sangria-like fruitiness takes over.
 
The palate leans a bit sweeter overall than last year’s, think pastry, tropical fruit, and sweet spices. While there’s a playfulness to the saturated fruit, it’s intense and sticky as well, clinging to the sides of the palate.
 
The finish stays grippy, with plenty of torched sugar and deep blackberry notes dipped in dark chocolate, lingering with aged oak and nuanced spice.