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Corman Collins Caroni 25th anniversary Black Cat Bar 1996
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"A perfect Caroni for beginners" is how one taster put it, and that's the honest read here. Classic 1996 Caroni signatures — tar, burning rubber, roasted oak — with banana, caramel and dark chocolate softening the edges. At 50% it's easy sipping, but several members wish it hadn't been diluted: the flavors are all there, just a touch thinner and the finish runs short.
The community says- Classic Caroni profile
- Very drinkable 50%
- But: Short finish
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The look inside the bottle
How does Corman Collins Caroni 25th anniversary Black Cat Bar 1996 taste?
Summarized by AI from 42 community reviews.
Easy-sipping 1996 Caroni, tar and rubber Loved as a very drinkable 1996 Caroni with all the tar-and-rubber character intact. The recurring gripe: the reduction to 50% costs it some punch and shortens the finish.
Anyone wanting an accessible way into Caroni's tar-and-rubber style
Cask-strength fans who want maximum Caroni concentration
Style & occasion: Mature & oakySipping neat
Full aroma profile Aroma families · nose & palate · top aromas
18 of 42 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
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Community voices
What does the community say?
42 community reviews
18 selected write-ups on this page, all of them in the RumX app
Top 20% of Trinidad rums
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Ranges include their upper bound: “7–8” means above 7 up to and including 8. See the full rating guide
Positive from 8.0 · Mixed 6.0–7.9 · Critical below 6.0
Review by Oliver
Most helpful positive review
Excellent Caroni nose. Rubber, some tropical fruit and great cocoa notes. On the palate it continues first class and intense with a very pleasant sweetness. Only the relatively short finish then denies a top rating. The bottom line is nevertheless a first-class Caroni of the legendary 1996 vintage at a pleasant drinking strength.
Review by Pavel Spacek
Most helpful mixed review
... Caroni is a distillery from Trinidad, producing at the time of its greatest glory rum, which was added at a ratio of 1:10 to the naval blend. It was too strong and strange to be pleasant on the tongue. In 2000, the distillery ceased production and closed. Only in 2010 did tasters appear who took a liking to the rum because of its special taste. And the interest grew. Caroni belongs to the category of "you need to try before you die" rums. I recommend it, Caroni is a truly unique rum.
Review by Maxence
Amazing 1996 vintage ! Dilution makes it really accessible and profile is sweet as hell with loads of banana, milk chocolate, caramel and molasses or cofee. A perfect Caroni for beginners who want to discover the distillery 😍
Review by Tschusikowsky
It's amazing how much flavor and strength is still there after dilution. I try to look at the "glass" half full🫤 In the mouth it's just gone too quickly. The palate is fiercely awesome. Tar, rubber, as it should be. The finish is long and delicious. Fruits and spices are added. The rum is awesome. Nevertheless, there would have been potential for something really great. Too bad. Apart from that, it's a great rum. I'll be dreaming tonight about what it would have been like with a few percent more.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
Another great Caroni though not on the gmheavy and of the sce, more like a medium heavy version. The Caroni flavours are there and very present so you're never in doubt of who made it. The nose is well balanced and a medium heavy Caroni. Tar, rubber and roasted oak hit you first closely followed by lots of fruit and some cinnamon. The palate takes off where the nose left off. Smoky oak with tar and rubber, dried fruit and spices. I like that there is a spicy tinge to the palate. The finish is long with oak, spices, rubber and a hint of raisin.
Review by cigares
Un nez puissant et élégant, les notes d’atelier mécanique sont évidentes mais en balance avec les fruits tropicaux. Du bois de cèdre en soutient et un côté herbacé et frais qui ajoute à l’équilibre de ce nez assez incroyable. La première bouche est ample et pleine, les fruits tropicaux prennent ici le dessus et les notes d’atelier mécanique sont en retrait. Le bois de cèdre prend le dessus ensuite. La bouche est moins intéressante que le nez, dommage ! La finale est vraiment longue avec beaucoup de bois de cèdre et quelques fruits tropicaux.
Review by Jeremy Roger 🇫🇷
Delicious! A complex mix! I love it 🥰 If it had been a little less reduced it would have been excellent.
Review by Johannes
Nice 96 Caroni notes recognizable, but unfortunately too diluted!
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
Unfassbar leckerer 96er Caroni allerdings im Easy Sipping Format aufgrund der perfekt gewählten 50%. Nicht zu dünn aber auch nicht zu aufdringlich. Auf den Punkt fruchtig würzig und super intensiv mit allem was man von einem Caroni erwartet. Wirklich geiler Stoff!
Review by Jakob
Phew, as with the Diamond from the Single Cask series, the question arises: why did they have to dilute it here? The nose still has a lot of charm, the potential is clearly recognizable. On the palate, however, the dilution has a very unfavorable effect, the aromas blend together and the remaining impression is of pulpy substance rather than genuine Caroni concentrate (after all, we are looking at the exceptional 1996 vintage). A real shame, because there was certainly more to it here.
Review by Rare Akuma
Tasted at SDR’24 Lovely Caroni profile, musty yet zingy, with balanced aromas of bitter, burnt sugar, dark chocolate and leather jacket on one side; and fresh currants on the other side. A clear thread of black tar, burning rubber and short-steeped herbal tea runs through. On the palate much less fruity and much more spiced. Starts sweet with notes of nougat and bresillienne. Then heavily dusted in baking spice and pepper. Nice depth provided by pinetree resin, vanillapod and tar, with a backlash of minty tea. Medium length finish with more dried fruits, sugar-coated peanuts and cinnamon, slightly tannic, but foremost bitter with blackened sugar and walnut skins. Probably (read: most likely) this would be even better at cask stength. Usually I’m very sceptical of reduction but oddly enough it doesn’t hurt here.
Review by Filip Šikula
Diamond Advent Calendar RFC 2024.
Review by Sebastian.W
Tasted at SDR2024.
Review by alex
Always a pleasure to taste this kind of juice 🤩 Very good Caroni , very nice Years , just a regret that there was a reduction but it remains very good. Nice complexity, the traditional and characteristic aromas of this distillery, nice length although a bit short compared to usual. I like it a lot 😍
Review by Alexandre Van Ham
Tasted with the famous Roger Caroni! Thanks to him for the discovery
Review by Martin Švojgr
Rather a weaker heavy Caroni both in taste and in aroma. Not aggressive at all, technical notes are there but very gently presented.
Review by Barnagricole
A bit disappointed, very light. The finish however is very pleasant.
Review by Richard Krupa
Beautiful aroma, in taste spices, lightly wood, tar and rubber, dilution is ideal for me, didn’t bother me particularly, but it’s true that the finish is quite quick
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Community shelf
27 bottles logged by 25 collectors.
Both drunk and collected.
22% opened, 2 emptied.
What did the community pay for Corman Collins Caroni 25th anniversary Black Cat Bar 1996?
Community paid 452–630 €.
Purchase prices reported by members, not a shop price. Avg. 506 €. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
27 purchased · 43 tasted · 12 wishlist · as of
Details about Corman Collins Caroni 25th anniversary Black Cat Bar 1996
A rum from Trinidad, bottled by Corman Collins, at 50%.
Read on in the RumX Guide
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