Aroma visualization from community tastings
Velier Diamond & Versailles SVSG 1996
Near-universal love here, with only a couple of tasters finding it too woody and bitter. This is a dark, heavy Demerara blend of Diamond and Versailles — licorice, dried prunes, roasted coffee, burnt sugar, leather, and the telltale "glue and lack" funk Diamond fans chase. Almost no fresh fruit, barely any sweetness. Give it 15 minutes in the glass and the nose really opens up.
- Complex dark profile
- Well-integrated alcohol
- Long roasted finish
+10
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How does Velier Diamond & Versailles SVSG 1996 taste?
Aggregated from 46 community reviews.
Dark, heavy Demerara full of licorice and coffee A heavy, spice-and-licorice-driven Demerara that most rate among Velier's best blends. One or two find it too woody-bitter, but the 57.9% sits remarkably well integrated.
Fans of old, dark, tropically-aged Demerara blends
Anyone wanting fruit, sweetness, or a light easy pour
How is Velier Diamond & Versailles SVSG 1996 rated?
RumX's 0–10 scale is strict , 9.1 lands squarely in the "Excellent" band. 100% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 0% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
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Rum reviews
Selected write-ups from 46 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.
Based on 46 ratings
Review by Johannes
I am impressed! I have not had the rum in the glass for a long time. Meanwhile, I like it even better. Wonderfully complex blend. Currently I feel more Diamond with the typical glue note, molasses, wood, dark dry fruits, less Versailles notes.
Review by Christoph H.
Very stark aged, deep and heavy Demerara blend. The rum is more on the spicy, barrel and overall tart side. There is hardly any fruit on the nose, some prune in the background. Sweetness is also just absent, if at all in the form of strongly burnt brown sugar. Otherwise, there is a lot of freshly roasted coffee, licorice, roasted aromas, leather, tobacco and herbs. Still some furniture polish in the background. In the mouth heavy, full-bodied, oily, sweet. Much rounder than still in the nose, a bit more fruit, lots of molasses, balanced spice. Very horny rum, I like exceedingly well
Review by Jakob
A rum that was somewhat under my radar for a long time - but that doesn't do the bottling justice. The Marque by Diamond is quite recognizable thanks to the dominant liquorice notes. The Versailles component comes forward with minerality, plus the oak barrel with its sweet vanilla note. Clearly the best Demerara blend from Velier in my eyes.
Review by TheRhumhoe
A blend that plays on the complementary aromas and opulence of the Demerara style. The alchemy works on the nose, with a dark, chocolatey woodiness that opens with spices (vanilla, cinnamon, licorice) before plunging into the darkness of Demerara: dried fruits (prunes, grapes), black tea, leather, notes of varnish, glue and polish, baked caramel and burnt sugar immerse us in this facet that is as dark as it is gourmand. A generous, refined and unrestrained profile. On the palate, the blend dons its dark cloak, with a strong concentration of roasted, grilled and even burnt aromas. Leather and wood take center stage, but are quickly overtaken by a myriad of spices (cinnamon, licorice, vanilla back in the mix), coffee and dark chocolate. Dried fruit and burnt sugar are there in support, with that pleasant, slightly bitter roasted warmth. The alcohol goes unnoticed in this landscape as dark as it is delicious. The finish, perhaps not as intense as the rest of the profile, nevertheless retains all its splendor with that very dominant dark side. However, black tea and floral notes suddenly emerge to underpin the profile, before fruit and a saline touch finalize the show. The two origins complement each other well, delivering a performance that lives up to expectations: intense, full-bodied and round, this blend is now arousing the curiosity of bottlers who are trying their hand at the exercise with the same combination, without ever managing to match this unicorn.
Review by Jarek
Franconian Rum Tasting Gang & Jakob, 2023-07-27 Teil 2: Dunkel, schwer, würzig. Lakritze mit Trockenobst und ganz dunklen Beeren. Dunkle Schokolade, Tee und genau richtiges Maß an Holz. Ein Meisterwerk! Nochmals 0,5 cl verkostet und ich muss die Wertung etwas nach oben korrigieren.
Review by Gunnar Böhme "Bauerngaumen" 🤓
My hands were shaking with anticipation, as you can easily see from the blurred photo. Simply delicious.
Review by Serge
Blindverkostung: altes, dunkles, kontinentales Profil. Fruchtig, Holzig, Malzig … super lecker. Hab ihn beim ersten mal wohl doch nicht genug stehen lassen. Erste Verkostung: Mein zweiter Velier Demera-Blend … gefällt mir aus dem Stehgreif direkt besser als der zuletzt verkostete Diamon & Port Mourant (PM) … das dunklere Diamond S Mark passt sehr schön zum Versailles. Lakritze und Kaffee vermischen sich hier mit Pflaume und Kräutern. Alles schön tropisch gereift und mit lecker Kleber und Lack dabei.
Review by Mopar Rules
more shy on the nose with very balanced smell of spices, wood, burned caramel. Hard for me to find much fruitiness. On the palate, a subtle bitterness that harmonizes much better with the caramel and spices than RX13135 I tasted same evening. Strong, intense, long finish
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
I only have one comment on the nose for this one and that's WOW. Let it rest for at least 15 minutes and the nose is a crazy explosion of flavours not there when you poor the glass. I worried that the palate wouldn't be able to keep up with such a rich nose, but that wasn't the case. The palate is wonderful and very well balanced. The alcohol has been so well integrated that you don't need water, some may want a drop or two, but a wonderful palate overall. The finish is long and has a minty coffee note to it and it just keeps on lingering. Try to leave the glass for the next day nose it!
Review by zabo
Die Bewertungen entspricht einer Blindverkostung, dank der neuen Funktion in der App. Im Nachhinein gesehen schon ein wenig zu schlecht von mir bewertet, aber trotz allem kein Highlight am dem Abend für mich. Mir war er ein wenig zu holzig bitter im Geschmack. Trotzdem danke an Jakob fürs teilen.
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Expert reviews
Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by Who Rhum The World
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Expert review by Tasting Bro's
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Expert review by The Dunder Hut
Details about Velier Diamond & Versailles SVSG 1996
A Pot & Column Still Rum from Guyana, bottled by Velier, at 57,9%.
Community purchases
53 bottles logged by 41 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
5% opened, 1 emptied and repurchased.
What does Velier Diamond & Versailles SVSG 1996 cost?
Community paid €159–€1,558.
Current best price: €1,170.50 – within the typical community range.
What members actually paid for their bottles. A typical range, not the current shop price. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
53 purchased · 47 tasted · 35 wishlist · as of
About the Diamond (Versailles) distillery
The Diamond (Versailles) distillery is located in Guyana. Rums from Diamond (Versailles) have been reviewed 173 times with an average of 8.1/10.
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Velier Albion AN 1994
Velier Albion AN 1994Tasting noteThick, dark Demerara with a drying finish
Velier Diamond & Port Mourant <W>PM 1999
Velier Diamond & Port Mourant <W>PM 1999Tasting noteDark, oily, heavy Demerara sipper
Velier Diamond SVW 1999
Velier Diamond SVW 1999Tasting noteDark, chocolatey Demerara, intense and a bit rough
Velier Diamond S<W> 1981
Velier Diamond S<W> 1981Tasting noteRich, woody old Demerara with a bitter edge
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