I bet all of you explore the rum world.
And advent calendars are great opportunity to find new “gems”.
What Advent calendars did you buy?
How do you rate them?
4 Likes
Got the 1423 Blue calendar this year. So far, it’s been rather underwhelming, but we’ll see.
I will probably look for another one next year
4 Likes
This year I bought more than I was able to deal with. Like every year.
First Advent calendar that arieved, was from Michael Ginnerup.
Nice one with many “explorer bottles”
Price for 3cl = 242e
Check the content
- Beenleigh 2006 Tropical Ageing 15 years 59%, Australia
- Hampden Great House 2021 55%, Jamaica
- Plantation Jamaica 1998 CRV Bardstown Romdeluxe 49,5%
- Silver Seal Trinidad Rum 24 Years 1991-2015 50%
- Silver Seal Jamaica Hampen 21 Years 2000-2022 58%
- Silver Seal Old Navy Rum 2022 57%
- Velier Hampden Black Billed Streamertail LROK 10 Years 2010-2020 62,2%, Jamaica
- Transcontinental Hampden 2000 Inventorum 52,4%, Jamaica
- Romdeluxe Collectors Series Rum 1 Imperial Navy 57,18%
- Romdeluxe Limited Batch Series Ghana 60,3%
- Romdeluxe Limited Batch Series Panama 57,18%
- Romdeluxe Limited Batch Series Foursquare 15 years 2005 61%, Barbados
- Kintra Port Mourant 2005 12 years 55,9%, Guyana
- Kintra Uitvlugt 1997 21 years 49,1%, Guyana
- Kintra Enmore 27 years 1990 53,7%, Guyana
- Our Rum & Spirits Guyana Diamond 2003-2017 63,7%
- The Duchess Diamond Guyana 20 years 1998-2019 50,8%
- The Duchess Versailles Enmore 28 years 1990-2019 54,9%, Guyana
- The Duchess Rhumerie Du Simon 14 years 2004 61%, Martinique
- The Duchess Mount Gay 19 years 2000-2019 54,3%, Barbados
- The Duchess Distillerie de Labourdonnais 9 years 57,9%, Mauritius
- The Duchess Uitvlugt 27 years 1993-2020 50,1%, Guyana
- The Duchess WP Lluidas Vale 14 years 2006-2020 56,8%, Jamaica
- The Duchess Foursquare 21 years 2008-2021 60,2%, Barbados
9 Likes
Lets check another 24-samples degustation set.
This one was home made by 44 participants.
Price for 24 samples set = one bottle + 8e shipping
Everyone has to -
- choose a bottle worth of 100e and more (secret choice confirmed by admin)
- split the bottle in pre-definied 33 mini-bottles (2cl for 70cl bottles, 1.5cl for 50cl bottles)
- mark all the bottles with your ID number + RumX code
- send all the 33 samples to the admin
- admin switch the samples and make for everyone unique sample set according to “the samples matrix” and send the samples back
- everyone make a photo of his sample for public galery ready for discussion
Benefits of getting 24 unique samples this way is -
- costs you 1 bottle + 2x shipping fee
- if you split valuable bottle you get valuable samples - sample matrix rule
- you are able to make blind tasting
Check the list -
|—|—|
|Savanna Réunion Rum (Bottled for Kirsch)|17014|
|Grays S.B.S Mauritius 2009|15471|
|Travellers The Nectar Of The Daily Drams|9453|
|Clarendon Bellamy‘s Reserve Jamaica Clarendon MDR|14272|
|Le Galion Martinique|12169|
|T.D.L Trinidad Rum|16063|
|Foursquare Barbados Rum (Kirsch Import)|12070|
|C.A.C.D The Nectar Of The Daily Drams Venezuela|14210|
|Worthy Park Single Estate 2006|241|
|Port Mourant Small Batch Rare Rums|13526|
|Chelo Clairin Vieux Sajous Lustau Oloroso Cask|11818|
|T.D.L Trinidad|15202|
|Licorera Cihuatán Folklore (Cihuatán Fanpage)|12598|
|Diamond Guyana Ed. 5|12834|
|Collectors Series No. 16|17074|
|Bielle Rhum Vieux Agricole |10752|
|Worthy Park Jamaica Rum|11348|
|Bodegas de America S.A Malteco Seleccion|1480|
|Chelo Vieux Sajous (LMDW)|17323|
|Chelo Clairin Vieux Sajous - First Release|7229|
|Uitvlugt Rum Artesanal Guyana Rum PM|483|
|MHOBA S.A.W. Cask Rum|15235|
|Hampden S.B.S Jamaica <>H|12623|
|Hampden <>H|9149|
|Ten Cane Collectors Series|11073|
|Isautier L’Elise Rhum Vieux Agricole|13446|
|Saint Lucia Distillers Chairman‘s Reserve Master’s Selection (Rum Stylez)|7688|
|Monymusk Monymusk Jamaica Single Rum MMW|13409|
|Grays The Nectar Of The Daily Drams LMDW|14941|
|El Salvador Transcontinental Rum Line|12462|
|Inverroche Limestone Rum|5363|
|West Indies Plantation Extreme No. 5|12498|
|Beenleigh Australie 2013|15956|
|Demerara Distillers Ltd Big Mama Full Proof Private Stock|13468|
|Plantation Old Reserve (Club)|17865|
|Rum Shark Angostura 2013|17859|
|Long Pond Cambridge STC❤️E|416|
|Foursquare Exceptional Cask Selection XVI Shibboleth|11721|
|Clarendon No. 38 MMW|16841|
|Charleston 60’s|12778|
|New Yarmouth The Royal Cane Cask Company|12050|
|Mount Gay Elliott Erwitt|10646|
|Appleton Estate Jamaica Single Cask Selection|13840|
|Wild Series Rum El Salvador No. 10|7756|
11 Likes
That’s an interesting concept because it is community-driven and scales much better than a centralized calendar. Obviously, the organizational impact for the admin does increase with every new bottle and there are fixed thresholds because the final number of samples needs to be dividable for each participant and 24 days, but the advantages of this concept outweigh the disadvantages.
How is the sample matrix rule set up? Do you have buckets for the worth of each bottle? Is it calculated based on the recent market price or the price the bottle was bought for?
Edit. regarding the initial topic. I usually don’t buy Advent Calendars. The commercial ones are usually not to my liking and for the better ones, my budget is usually too tight in November/December.
6 Likes
That’s a really interesting and cool concept 
3 Likes
We needed 2 rounds before we found 100% working concept.
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Any number of participants join FB group. This year joined 52 people.
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After deadline, everyone has 7 days to send me the proposal of bottle they would like to share. The rule is only one - bottle need to be worth of at least 100e
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I as admin decide if and what bottle do we accept. We do not need to have FSQ2009 in every sample set or pure FSQ degu set.
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Time to time I also confirm few bottles with value 90e, if they are interesting
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This year 45 members send me the proposal, 6 were inactive, 1 dont like to buy any other bottle that he proposed
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Then I sort out the participants according to the value of the bottle and fill their names in the matrix. There is formula in the matrix that works with position of the cell and part of random function and show, what sample should you get. The formula also says that it is much probable, that you get the samples with similar value comared to your bottle.
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After everyone sent their samples, the “admin team” confirmed arival of the samples and they get the matrix.
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If someone skip sending his samples, I just delete his ID and re-generate the matrix. We can work with floating number of participants.
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The great advantage of the matrix is fact, that we do not need to have 33 participants. This year we had 44 participants, last year we had 52 participants.
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The most work is in “admin team” hands. The need to sort the samples and redistribute them.
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Anyway - the bottling work is already done by every owner of the bottle.
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This year the “admin team” spent 5 hours with sorting. @Oliver - just let me know how much time did you spend with your RumX advent calendar.
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the salary of “admin team” are samples/bottles that every member could add to the pack.
Sorting out the samples in 2023 -
Salary of “admin team” in 2023 -
15 Likes
I also purchased two comercial Advent calendars. Both form my favourite bottlers - RumClub/Rum Depot and Kirsch.
(I am still missing Advent calendar from Rum Artesanal and The Rum Cask)
Both of them looks pretty nice. RumClub has more luxury design.
Even if both are made by companies, that have bottled amazing rums, the content is filled with 50% rums that I dont like to taste anymore. I expected more rums from their production. At least Rum Club put their newest bottling in no 24.
8 Likes
One more amateur advent callendar, that I just started to taste - PLANTATION
In CZ we got a huge fan of Alexandre Gabriel. He got a dozen of Plantation samples, he even choses bottles for special CZ bottlings, etc. So the content of his advent callendar was obvious.
The price/content was the main criteria.
Two friends, 6 hours of splitting bottles and we got 24x 3cl samples for 64e.
- Jamaica 2008 HJF, koňak finiš - private single cask 2023 pro LMDW, 61,8%
- Guyana 2008, koňak finiš - private single cask 2023 pro Belgii, 54,1%
- Barbados 2013, koňak finiš - single vintage #2 Under the Sea, 50,2%
- Fiji Islands 2009, Kilchoman Peated whisky finiš – single cask 2020, 49,6%
- La Reunion 2005, koňak Ambree Ferrand finiš - private single cask 2021 pro VB&B, 62,5%
- Panama 2007, koňak finiš – single vintage #3 Terroir, 51,4%
- Trinidad 15YO, Red Pineau finiš - single cask 2017, 43,2%
- Guyana 2007, Teeling whisky finiš - single vintage #2 Under the Sea, 51%
- Haiti 2010, koňak finiš - private single cask 2023 pro Belgii, 40,1%
- Jamaica 1999 Long Pond HJC, Ambree koňak - private single cask 2022 pro Salon du Rhum, 76%
- Panama 2012 - Pauillac Wine finiš - single cask 2022, 49,8%
- Fiji Islands 2001 Rozelieures whisky finiš - single cask 2022, 45,9%
- Trinidad 2003, koňak finiš - single vintage 2016, 42%
- Guyana 2007, Teeling whisky finiš - single cask 2022, 53,7%
- Barbados 10YO, Oloroso Sherry finiš - single cask 2020, 49,5%
- Jamaica 2009, Spanish Orange Wine finiš - single cask 2022, 53%
- Panama 2008, White Pineau finiš - single cask 2022, 46,4%
- Belize XO, Selection des Anges koňak finiš - single cask 2017, 49,4%
- Trinidad 2011, Sauterners finiš - single cask 2022, 43,1%
- La Reunion 13YO, Calvados finiš - single cask 2017, 40,8%
- Jamaica 2009 VRW, koňak finiš - private single cask 2023 pro Belgii, 45,6%
- Multi Island (Guyana, Barbados, Trinidad, Jamaica), Peaty Arran whisky - single cask 2017, 41,7%
- Guyana 17, Ancestral koňak finiš - single cask 2016, 56,3%
- Saint Lucia 2007, koňak 1840 Original finiš - private single cask 2021 pro Salon du Rhum, 60,2%
8 Likes