TheSpiritsBusiness.com
2/21/2017 by Nicola Carruthers
Appleton Estate has honoured master blender Joy Spence’s 20th year at the distillery by launching a 25-year-old rum, named Appleton Estate Joy Anniversary Blend.
Created by Spence, the limited edition 25-year-old minimum aged rum also includes rums that have been aged up to 35 years.
“For my anniversary blend, I simply set out to create the rum that I’d like to sip while watching the colours of my garden change in the warm glow of the Jamaican sunset,” said Spence.
“It includes two rum marques which are of particular sentimental significance to me: The first of these marques was laid down to age in 1981, which is the year I joined the Appleton Estate team, and the second is my favourite marque of pot still rum. The final blend is a wonderful rum that I hope will be become a cornerstone of my legacy.”
Spence graduated from the University of the West Indies with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and the University of Loughborough with a Master of Science in Analytical Chemistry.
She joined Appleton Estate as chief chemist and quickly became “enthralled” with the process of blending rum. Over the next 16 years, Spence learnt under the expert guidance of former master blender Owen Tulloch.
Spence’s role as the world’s first female master blender in 1997 came at a time when rum was primarily made and consumed by men.
The new offering “opens with a delicate orange peel top note”, a hallmark of Appleton Estate rums. On the finish, there are hints of “warm vanilla, butterscotch, coffee and layers of almond and toasted oak”.
Appleton Estate Joy Anniversary Blend will be rolled out across markets starting in March 2017 with an $250 MSRP.
Appleton Estate Joy Anniversary Blend is a beautifully complex and elegant, rare rum celebrating Joy Spence’s 20th anniversary as Master Blender. In 1997 Joy made history, ascending to the helm of Appleton Estate to become the spirit industry’s first female Master Blender. At once an artist and a scientist, Joy has created some of the world’s finest aged rums. This exquisite limited edition is the culmination of Joy’s pioneering spirit, inventive mind, and dedication to her craft. This 25-year-old minimum aged rum includes rum aged up to 35 years, and is a reflection of the woman who created it – an embodiment of passion, love, and, above all else, joy.
Serve neat in a tumbler to fully appreciate Appleton Estate Joy Anniversary Blend, which opens with a delicate orange peel top note, a hallmark of Appleton Estate rums, intertwined with ginger and spice. The aroma finishes with vanilla, butterscotch, coffee, and layers of almond. The palate is exceptionally smooth with a long, elegant brown sugar finish.