KaribikAlps Premium Traders DDL Soulfire SWR 2018
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Tasters keep saying the same thing: for a four-year-old Demerara, this drinks way older than it should. Expect prunes, raisins, molasses, dark chocolate and coffee with a thick, oily texture. The Madeira finish brings noticeable sweetness and dried-fruit richness — some love that roundness, one or two found it tipping toward syrup. The 61.6% is well integrated, with a slight youthful alcohol edge.
The community says- Oily, rich texture
- Mature for its age
- Keep in mind: Youthful alcohol edge
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Yes, if you're after bold, mature, oaky rums for sipping neat.
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The look inside the bottle
How does KaribikAlps Premium Traders DDL Soulfire SWR 2018 taste?
From community reviews · summarized with AI
Oily, dried-fruit Demerara with sweet Madeira finish Widely liked as a surprisingly mature young Skeldon — oily, dried-fruit-heavy and roasty. The Madeira finish adds real sweetness, which a couple of tasters felt pushed slightly toward syrup.
Demerara fans who like dark, dried-fruit, oily rums
Anyone wanting a dry rum or put off by wine-finish sweetness
Style & occasion: Mature & oakySipping neat
Full aroma profile Aroma families · nose & palate · top aromas
Relative to this rum's strongest aroma family
20 of 30 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
Which glass for which rum? The community guide ›
What does the community say?
30 community reviews
Rating scale & review checks
On RumX, 7 means “Good” and 8 means “Very good”.
See the full rating guideHow ratings are made and how we check them ›The website shows a selection of written reviews. The distribution also includes ratings without text. All published reviews are available in the RumX app.
24 selected written reviews
The distribution above includes all 30 ratings, including those without text.
Review by cigares
A nose of woody sweetness with a peppery/spicy side. Dried fruits, molasses, old leather, vegetal notes, and lots of vanilla. A complex and enticing nose. The palate is straightforward, direct, and indulgent. The sweet, pastry side dominates, perfectly supported by the alcohol and wood (very well integrated). Less complexity than on the nose, unfortunately, this palate is rather monolithic. The finish is loooong, balanced, classy, the other aromas play their part and everything ends beautifully. A fresh tobacco note appears and the wood turns bitter. A very beautiful rum, let down by its somewhat simple palate. A splendid finish! Kudos to this very small Swiss bottler.
Review by LukaŽiga
8,7:On the nose, strong barrel impact with roasted, slightly resinous wood notes like tonka bean, roasted nuts, almonds, cocoa, caramel, toffee, burnt sugar, biscuits, spicy, meaty, molasses is thick, dark with black tea, licorice, coppery, bump into our nosetrils. On aeration, dried fruits like raisins, figs and prunes arise, leather, spicy nutmeg, baking spices, coffee, slightly sulphurous. 9:On the palate, the attack is slightly sulphurous, fruity with dried fruits like raisins, prunes, apricots, dates, citrus and tropical fruits, cherry, sherry barrel impact is obvious, oak is roasted with caramel, dark chocolate, leather, meaty, spicy, molasses is thick, dark with black tea, licorice, sweet with Demerara sugar. 8,8:The finish is long, dry&tannic, with toasted oak, burnt, buttery, cocoa, nuts, butterscotch, biscuits, spicy, smoky, molasses is dark with black tea, licorice, fruits are dried.Sherry barrel impact is obvious. Edit:16.10.26
Review by Gunnar Böhme "Bauerngaumen" 🤓
Great Demerara cinema! And a great proof that even a four-year-old can be close to perfection in its class. More on the spicy side, less on the fruity side. The alcohol still brings a certain sharpness, but I'm sure with a few more years on the clock this rum could be the epitome of roundness and easily hit 90 points. P.S.: Could that be a maple syrup note that might be perceived as a disturbing factor?
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
#5986 22.11.2025 After party at my 60th birthday. A very nice young release. Very nice overall balance with great ABV integration, light coffee and caramel with some added plums and spices. Oily fresh and naturally sweet palate with a medium to long finish.
Review by Timo Groeger
Great stuff from Guyana, so far the best today, and it will probably stay that way. Very, very roasted, as expected, dark chocolate, as well as nuts, oak and cask on the palate, with cocoa and tonka bean also in the nose.
Review by DomM
A bottling of a new SWR vintage? Sign me up for that! On the nose I get a rather mature profile despite the young age. Lots of buttery chocolate notes, some leather and wood as well as dried fruits - which I attribute (at least in part) to the Madeira finish. Speaking of the finish: this is one of the rare cases, where I feel the wine finish enhanced the overall profile on the nose without overwhelming the rum. I like it! While the profile on the nose delivers way over its age (so to speak), there is also an alcoholic note to it, which stays even after >1h of breathing in the glas. On the palate, this bottling „hides“ its young age even better imo. The Madeira finish does some work, but the rum itself seems also very round and pleasant on its one (guesswork, I’ll admit). Lots of dried fruits and sweetness. A silky texture with perfectly integrated ABV despite >60% after 4y of aging. I have to admit, I’m pretty impressed by this bottling! Despite the age and finish, this is a very nice bottling. Rich and complex. While it cannot provide the depth of the 2001 bottlings, this isn’t very surprising tbh (in the SBS bottling I had as a reference we are talking 21y of aging). The Soulfire delivers way more livelyness and freshness delivering on (dried) fruits without the overly dark notes from the 2001 vintage. Very nice overlay all. Cheers to Switzerland for this little gem.
Review by SaibotZtar
Very nice spicy nose leather, brown caramel, chocolate, vanilla, dark dried fruits... Molasses ... Latte very balanced although very restrained after 20min in the glass. On the palate incredibly oily almost like a syrup... Brown caramel, sweet spice, plum jam beautiful barrel notes with vanilla and nutmeg. Very tasty stuff and at such a young age.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
It's exciting how such an extremely young Skeldon can already taste so "old"? The ageing in Madeira casks is clearly noticeable, otherwise this sweetness, light acidity and intense oiliness would not be possible, even if it was only 10 months. Very tasty aromas of butter caramel, raisins, dates, prunes and dried figs, as well as some tonka bean and bitter-sweet molasses. Very tasty and pleasantly surprised!
Review by Thunderbird
A young SWR that makes a powerful impression. It has a very balanced mix of dry fruit, wood, and caramel aromas. The alcohol is quite well integrated. For its young age, it’s really enjoyable.
Review by zabo
Honestly, I had no big expectations for this bottling as it said nothing to me at all. But I was positively surprised. You hardly notice the young age of this bottling. Really good.
Review by Jussi Piirainen
For my 250th review i picked demerara rum that could be a hidden gem, lets have a taste. On the nose: Dried fruits, nice burnt sugar/caramel note, toasted, woody notes. Nice rich and round profile for 4 years old rum. Taste: Naturally sweet caramel and molasses notes, nice dried fruit notes like raisins and figs, light dark chocolate notes. Some woody notes. Abv integration is perfect. Finish: Dried fruits, woody notes, roasted and nutty notes. Medium-long finish. Ok, this is a hidden gem. Very rich profile for a such a young rum. I absolutely loved sipping this rum and its one of those rums that you could sip all night.
Review by Basti
Tasted the Soulfire in a direct cross-comparison with partly completely different vintages and in the end also different profiles. Including the S.B.S (54.1%) from 2001, the El Dorado Rare Cask Skeldon from 2000, the RomDeluxe from 2019 and the TRC SWR 2001. Nose: TRC: Hard to believe that this is supposed to be a SWR, blind I would probably classify it more as a REV. Lots of roasted aromas, licorice, leather and tobacco, but also dried fruit, spices and a pleasant sweetness. Definitely stands out from the SWRs I know and I really, really like it! ED Skeldon: Simply incredibly round and inviting. Lots of chocolate, spices, sweetness, some coffee, but also coconut and wood. S.B.S: Has by far the most concise coffee note. However, it is somewhat more restrained on the nose compared to the competition. Needs quite a while to develop. Soulfire: Surprisingly mature for its young age. Molasses, licorice, raisins, chocolate, caramel, plum - there's a bit of everything here. I also like it very much. RDL: This is the second time I've had this in my glass after the HanseSpirit. Of course, the almost 80% ABV on the nose cannot be denied. In addition, in contrast to the Soulfire (same age, different vintage), it seems significantly less complex. For me, the weakest nose. Slightly reminiscent of Belize. Palate: TRC: Seems like a hybrid of SWR and REV on the palate, there is also a hint of pencil shavings. It lacks a little intensity, but for me it's still a successful bottling! ED Skeldon: For me, this is in a different league. Everything is very balanced, alcohol perfectly integrated. A super rum! S.B.S.: Also on the palate the concise coffee note, chocolate, wood and also a hint of perfume. Just beats the TRC. Soulfire: Not entirely convincing on the palate. Molasses, licorice, caramel, dried fruit, but also something disturbing (for me). RDL: The alcohol is also perceptible on the palate, with caramel, subtle coffee, vanilla and baking spices. My ranking: ED Skeldon: 9.2
Review by Skyfly
For a four-year-old rum, surprisingly complex and dark. Dried fruits, wood, molasses, caramel, and various nuts and spices shape the flavor profile here. The alcohol is almost perfectly integrated and ensures an endless finish.
Review by Dr.Django
After almost over half a year, a Guyana on the palate again! This one is just right for that! The familiar profile with dried plum, dark fruits, wood, coffee, and dark chocolate slowly and thickly oily embraces the mouth. Very sweet and at the same time dry in the finish, which unfortunately is a bit short. Very good rum, many thanks @Saibot
Review by Mirco
Dried fruits and a pleasant sweetness, carried by creamy sugarcane character. Spicy wood and a hint of mint give depth. For its young age, it shows surprisingly expressive and complex. Despite 61.6%, the structure feels well balanced with a slight dryness in the finish that pleasantly rounds off the profile.
Review by Christian Rudt
Super würzig an der Nase. Sehr intensive Karamellnote ohne süße. Die nimmt dann geschmacklich allerdings etwas zu und dominiert für mich etwas zu sehr in Richtung Sirup tendierend. Für Vier Jahre dennoch eine richtig gute Abfüllung. Wieder einmal sieht man wie gut in Guyana Rum produziert wird.
Review by Mentalo
The Soulfire Demerara 2018 is not a bad bottling. Dried fruits, spices, caramel notes, a bit of barrel and light acidity. But it also brings a lot of sweetness from aging in the Madeira cask. For me personally, that was a bit too much.
Review by Jakob
Super easy to drink, extremely accessible despite a somewhat fiery alcohol content. Rich sweetness of dark caramel and sweet wine, which in the rest of the profile finds a nuanced counterpoint with spices, dried fruits, roasted nuts, and dark chocolate, which despite the aromatic straightforwardness, never gets boring. Very good.
Review by Lukas Jäger
Wow, this bottling surprises me. Despite the young age, surprisingly complex, round and the finish fits well into the overall impression. Spicy, rusty notes play nicely with dark and red fruits, probably mainly due to the Madeira finish. Nice bottling, I didn't expect that!
Review by Schnubbii
Coffee/cappuccino and cocoa, the Madeira finish comes through well at the end and complements the profile. The alcohol integration isn't perfect, so a bit of youth shows through. A good rum, unfortunately (too) expensive.
Review by Martin Švojgr
I am very pleasantly surprised. For being so young, it is very intense and full. The Madeira finish didn't kill it, but gently acidified and enhanced it.
Review by Johannes
I'm really positively surprised! On the nose, definitely wine cask, fruity sweetness, tobacco. On the palate, you can clearly taste the Madeira finish, relatively sweet, leather, tobacco, wood. Overall, it's a very good rum. It would be interesting to try the base spirit without the finish. I'm a bit torn on how to classify this rum. It reminds me of the many recent releases from Cubans, which are surely sweetened or have, for example, a sherry finish.
Review by Pavel Ungr, RumRock
Vintage 2018. With 8.7 out of 10, it is among the better ones I've had in my glass.
Review by Pavel Spacek
Nice Skeldon. Lightly sharp, but tasty
This selection contains no written reviews in this rating range.
KaribikAlps Premium Traders DDL Soulfire SWR 2018 at live auctions
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4 bottles logged by 3 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
0% opened, 0 emptied.
What did the community pay for KaribikAlps Premium Traders DDL Soulfire SWR 2018?
Avg. community purchase price 140 €.
What members paid for this bottle, self-reported. Not a market value — the purchases are over three years old at the median and unverified.
4 purchased · 31 tasted · 6 wishlist · as of
Details about KaribikAlps Premium Traders DDL Soulfire SWR 2018
A Column Still Rum from Guyana, bottled by KaribikAlps Premium Traders, at 61,6%.
Which of the wooden stills is behind this rum? The RumX guide ›
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