Aroma visualization from community tastings
Swell de Spirits West Indies Flashback Series 2-07 1996
Oily coconut, buttery vanilla and roasted oak lead here, with dried fruit and a peppery, spiced finish underneath. At nearly 62% it drinks hot — several tasters knock it back to around 55% with a drop of water and like it much better. The nose plays hard to get and needs time in the glass to open. A well-made cask-strength Barbados, though a few find it more restrained than the proof promises.
The community says- Oily coconut
- Roasted oak spice
- But: Hot at full proof
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The look inside the bottle
How does Swell de Spirits West Indies Flashback Series 2-07 1996 taste?
Aggregated from 52 community reviews.
Hot, spicy Barbados that opens up with water Most owners land on "good but not exciting" — a clean, spicy Barbados that rewards water, though several wish it had more depth for the intensity.
cask-strength Barbados fans who add water
beginners and anyone wanting big complexity
How the community classifies this rum. Each category takes you to similar rums.
Which glass for which rum? The community guide →
21 of 52 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
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How is Swell de Spirits West Indies Flashback Series 2-07 1996 rated?
RumX’s 0–10 scale is strict: 8.2 sits in the “Very good” band. 100% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 0% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
Community voices
What does the community say?
65% rate it 8 or higher. 18 selected write-ups from 52 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by LukaŽiga
Most helpful positive review
8,6:On the nose, the first impression we get is very tempting with fruitcake note, some esters, as the fruits are tropical with pineapple, coconut and dried with raisins and apricots, roasted wood begets us with smoky touch and delicious pastry, caramel, spiced up with cinnamon. On aeration, we feel red fruits, more esters, buttery vanilla and sweet honey, as a molasses is vegetal with flowery, minty notes. Great! 8,6:On the palate, the attack is balanced with sweet, fruity and woody deliciousness with overripe, estery tropical fruits like pineapple, banana, coconut and citrus, red fruits later on.The wood is roasted, spicy with burnt sugar, honey, creamy vanilla, nuts, leather, a bit peppery, later some clove arises.The molasses is vegetal, earthy, floral, grassy and minty. 8,5:The finish is long with dry, spicy, roasted wood notes, similar as on the palate, but more on confectionery side with biscuits, pastry, as the fruits are dried, tropical, esters recede slowly....The molasses stays earthy...Some tannins arise.. Edit:28.6.25
Review by Thunderbird
Most helpful mixed review
I don't really warm up to this WIRD... the nose is smoky, bacony mixed with pastry, the woody roasted dominates with some catamel and pepper... it's certainly good, but not mine Second time in the glass today... and my opinion doesn't change... we don't go together
Review by Vincent D
Very gourmand on the nose, even if the alcohol is quite noticeable. Coconut, vanilla, wood, spices. Engaging. Warm and spicy on the palate. The wood is straightforward, with vanilla and coconut. The alcohol is very present, too much for me, and I prefer it with a drop of water. Rather long finish. Pleasant despite the alcohol, which could have been better integrated. Edit: tested with a little water to bring it down to 55% and found it much more pleasant. The alcohol is still very pungent, but leaves more room for vanilla, elegant woodiness and discreet coconut.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
My first 1996 WIRD. I was skeptical at first because I often don't like the "young" wird's because they consist only of tea and bitters. This one manages a nice balancing act between a 10% 1984 profile (honeycomb, incense, herbs) and a more typical Barbados foursquare profile (coconut, banana, caramel). Nice thing, but overall a little too bitter for me...
Review by Leo Krüper
Solid WIRD. This distillery will probably never quite convince me. Very light Barbados style with alcoholic finish.
Review by Jakob
Beautiful WIRD, which reminds me of the representatives from 2000. The good 10% more alcohol compared to the Wild Parrot create much more intensity and aromatics. I like it very much!
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
#4054 This rum is pretty good and I think the price matches the quality. Well balanced and fruity with nice roasted wood notes. I really like the caramel from nose to finish thigh it's very light on the nose. The empty glass is really nice and I can pick up some light smoke and honey.
Review by Mike H.
I didn’t take any notes at the Rhum Fest so a more detailed review will follow as soon as I get the chance to sample this rum again in a better context. I finally managed to sample this rum a second time and have to say that I’m less enthusiastic about it than at the rhum fest. Lowering my note from 84 to 79 as it makes for a decent sipper but lacks depth and complexity.
Review by Lot-NAS
Kind of boring, I mean it is complex but nothing is really standing out. Overall not worth a bottle.
Review by Basti
W(e)IRD, aber die Nase erinnert anfangs stark an einen Jamaikaner (low-mid ester) mit buttrigen Noten und ist eher untypisch für einen Bajan Rum. Auch am Gaumen spiegelt sich das ähnlich wieder und ich würde die Herkunft in einem Blindtasting mit Sicherheit falsch zuordnen. Alkohol gut eingenunden. Beim 2. Probieren ist er mir einfach zu flach und insgesamt etwas zu langweilig.
Review by TheRhumhoe
A very disappointing rum. This WIRD initially offers a very pastry and buttery nose, with aromas of fruit cakes, exotic fruits (pineapple) and a few traces of spices, roasted aromas and wood. The whole is greedy without being surprising or really intoxicating. Despite the 61.9%, the palate is extremely light. While the integration of alcohol is commendable, the flavors are very simplistic. Dried fruit, coconut, wood, spices, a little tobacco and that's it. The profile is both bland and terribly lacking in depth. The finish is just as ephemeral and unmemorable as the palate. After Wild Parrot's WIRD 1996, one disappointment follows another with this vintage. Even so, the quality/price ratio remains superior to that of Wild Parrot, although there are much higher quality, more aromatic rums available at much lower prices.
Review by Alexander Rasch
Spannender Rum. Wirkt in der Nase verschlossen. Alles sehr elegant und ausbalanciert. Am Gaumen super cremig und mit einer tollen Süße. Das Holz ist on point und der Abgang mit schönem Fasseinfluss. Die Aromen wirken lange nach. Kein spektakuläres Profil aber ziemlich lecker. Aber der Preis....
Review by mto75
Despite the 61.9% but rather restrained on the nose. What arrives goes in the direction of peach, tangerine and almond crescent. On the palate, toasty, allspice, latte, caramel. Perhaps most comparable to the Plantation WIRD 2007 Extreme No 5.
Review by w00tAN
Beim Geruch dominiert Frucht gefolgt von Würze und alkoholischen Noten. Im Mund dann eine schöne kräftige süße die eng mit Würze verbunden ist. Dann röstige Holznoten sie es einem Warm ums Herz machen. Der Alkohol ist wirklich gut eingebunden. Sehr schöner Rum aber nichts für Einsteiger
Review by TheJackDrop
Il faut vraiment le laisser reposer 45min ou plus pour avoir quelque chose au nez, mais après c’est bien. La bouche est par contre très puissante tout de suite et j’ai bcp apprécié les épices. Finalement assez proche d’un foursquare plus classique (et donc sûrement un peu cher) !
Review by Oliver
Good Barbados rum, but personally not quite convinced me.
Review by Filip Šikula
Přijemný zástupce WIRD. Vůně plná těžkých vůní, kokos, sušenky, karamel a koření. V chuti velmi kořeněné, vyšší ABV unese v tomto případě více chutí od rozinek přes koření po všudypřítomné dřevo. Závěr lehce štiplavý a středně dlouhý.
Review by Mentalo
Sehr feine Fruchtnoten mit bisschen Gewürzen, Karamell und Vanille. Angenehme Cremigkeit, aber es fehlt einfach an Tiefe und Komplexität
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Expert reviews
2 critics scored it, averaging 7.5/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by Single Cask Rum
Read full review →
Expert review by The Dunder Hut
The alcohol integration is killing the whole rum for me. It is quite a lot going on, but it is quite a lot next to each other not reall integrated well into each other. The harshness of the alcohol then takes over.
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Market value
Avg. community purchase price 192 €
What members paid for this bottle, self-reported. Not a market value — the purchases are over three years old at the median and unverified.
Details about Swell de Spirits West Indies Flashback Series 2-07 1996
A rum from Barbados, bottled by Swell de Spirits, at 61,9%.
Community purchases
36 bottles logged by 33 collectors.
A drinker & collector.
19% opened, 2 emptied and repurchased.
What did the community pay for Swell de Spirits West Indies Flashback Series 2-07 1996?
Community paid 173–201 €.
What members actually paid for their bottles. A typical range, not the current shop price. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
36 purchased · 55 tasted · 8 wishlist · as of
Read on in the RumX Guide
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Oliver · FounderBy rum lovers, for rum lovers
I'm Oliver, and RumX began in 2018 as a small passion project in Stuttgart, back then under the name Rum Tasting Notes.
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