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Velier Skeldon SWR 1973
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Dark chocolate, coffee and old wood pour out of the glass — several tasters spent a full hour just on the nose, calling it among the best they know. On the palate it's deep and intense: espresso, dried figs, walnut, leather, with tannins that "squeeze your tongue" and a real bitterness. A 32-year tropical-aged Skeldon that rewards patience but demands it.
The community says- Extraordinary nose
- Deep and complex
- Long finish
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Velier Skeldon SWR 1973 at live auctions
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How does Velier Skeldon SWR 1973 taste?
Summarized by AI from community reviews.
Deep, bitter, wood-driven old Demerara sipper Adored for one of the finest noses in Demerara rum, with figs, coffee and cocoa. The catch is a heavy, bitter, wood-forward palate that a few found too much.
People who love old, tannic, bitter wood-and-coffee Demerara rum
Anyone who dislikes bitterness or heavy oak
Style & occasion: Mature & oakySipping neat
Full aroma profile Aroma families · nose & palate · top aromas
Relative to this rum's strongest aroma family
6 of 24 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
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Recommendation
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What does the community say?
24 community reviews
9 selected write-ups on this page, all of them in the RumX app
Top 4% of Guyana rumsTop 9% at Skeldon
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Review by Jakob
Very noble profile, even if extremely bitter. Cocoa, coffee, leather, barrel - multi-layered dark notes paired with some dried fruit and subtle sweetness. For me, the nose is one of the best I've ever tasted - however, the rum's age has caused it to lose some of its edge on the palate. A rum for which you have to take your time, but which is well worth it.
Review by Oliver
A tad better on the nose than the 1978. Too much wood on the palate.
Review by Pavel Spacek
Old wooden cupboard with leather. A bit plump. Tannins squeeze your tongue and whole mouth, but these are not wine tannins, but wood tannins... Stare Velier Demerara rums are the best you can taste in the rum world. Rums matured rather by accident for several years in the tropics and no one topped up the cask contents. Angel's share was 90% and more, so the taste is especially full and intense. Although it's an extra expensive affair, I recommend tasting at least once in your life a rum from this series.
Review by Johannes
Compared to the Skeldon 78, the 73 can absolutely keep up. The nose is almost even better than the 78, on the palate a certain bitterness, but not at all disturbing. Liquid story!
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
This is a true masterpiece of a rum. Almost impossible to find but lucky for me one of my suppliers had one tucked away. Tried it and virtually fell in love on the nose alone. A perfectly balanced rum with a nose delivering on the taste. If you find a bottle it will set you back pretty badly 😊
Review by TheRhumhoe
The one and only Skeldon 1973 from Velier, a true liquid legend. The nose is unparalleled, deep and with an incredible aromatic density. The profile is ultra dark and reveals roasted notes (cocoa, dark chocolate, espresso coffee), old noble wood, leather, tobacco but also roasted and burnt aromas, notably caramel, molasses and sugar. The profile becomes heavier, but also more indulgent with dried fruits (prune, raisin), cherry, blackberry and black berries. There is the perfect balance between power and finesse, complexity and exuberance, it’s a true olfactory poetry. The palate is the very essence of the dark side, so dark it is: the wood is tannic and gripping on the palate, accompanied by the bitterness of cocoa, dark chocolate and espresso. Leather, tobacco and warm spices (licorice, nutmeg) amplify the roasted, burnt and smoky aspect of the structure. The dried and black fruits (including berries and cherry) go perfectly well with cooked caramel and burnt sugar to give this touch of indulgence. The profile is creamy, full-bodied and yet infinitely round and complex. It’s deep, rich, striking and impactful. The alcohol is perfectly integrated. A breathtaking rum that leaves you speechless. The finish is eternal and so comforting, it warms the heart and the palate. We find the typicality of Demerara rums but even more concentrated: a full-bodied and tannic wood, bitterness leaning towards cocoa, dark chocolate and coffee, empyreumatic notes on tobacco, leather, smoke, caramel and burnt sugar, warm spices (licorice and nutmeg), but also heavy dried fruits and a hint of menthol that refreshes the palate as an epic conclusion for an extraordinary tasting. Compared to the Skeldon 1978, this one is fruitier but also more tannic and bitter, whereas its brother is more in consensual harmony. Here we have the very quintessence of rum and all that it represents and evokes in terms of emotions, it becomes ineffable. I’d like to have this rum with me in paradise (if I go there!).
Review by Filip Šikula
Velier old Demerara evening 17.9.2025 I would say today we are expecting the peak of what the rum world can offer. 1. RX5347 Albion 1989 2. RX3502 Uitvlugt SP-ICBU 1988 3. RX515 Uitvlugt ULR 1997 4. RX753 Enmore ELCR 1995 5. RX867 Skeldon SWR 1978 6. RX3001 Skeldon SWR 1973 7. RX915 Blairmont 1991 8. RX368 Diamond SVW 1999 9. RX2729 Port Mourant PM 1993
Review by Adrianv
I have a chance to taste this rare rum finally. Nose is an masterpiece! Full of cherry, berries, oak, coffee, cocoa, caramel, molasses, very deep and intense! I spent an hour just snuffing:) Amazing nose. Barrel is present, age is dominant, but it is so complex on the nose! First sip. Wallnut, pepper, figs, coffee, chestnut. Wood is present. Quite bitter, but lovely way. There is intense concert of flavours, complex, deep. Barrel and biterness is dominant at the finish. Very unique rum in my opinion. Score is subjective - if you like wood and bitterness as i do, it is no brainer for you. Great but rare rum. Hard to find.
Review by ArminK
Thanks to Egon for the sampler. An honor to taste it. On the nose, first an ancient wooden cask with dark chocolate. I gave it a good 30 minutes in the glass. On the palate, first a lot of wood but not too bitter. Followed by a slightly sweetened espresso served in a leather cup. Some dried fruits. It lingers and lingers and lingers in the mouth. Simply wonderful.
Expert reviews
2 critics scored it, averaging 9.2/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum.
Expert review by The Fat Rum Pirate
Read full review ›A very unique tasting rum and very different to what we get nowadays. 32 years of ageing but not a year wasted. Sensational. If you are given the chance to try this then I would urge you do so. Rum rarely gets much better than this from Guyana. Will be...
Expert review by Single Cask Rum
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Expert review by Barrel Aged Thoughts
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Expert review by Who Rhum The World
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Expert review by Rum Diaries Blog
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Community shelf
20 bottles logged by 16 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
10% opened, 1 emptied.
What did the community pay for Velier Skeldon SWR 1973?
Community paid 512–16,100 €.
Purchase prices reported by members, not a shop price. Avg. 12,376 €. Full price & collection history in RX+ ›
20 purchased · 24 tasted · 31 wishlist · as of
Details about Velier Skeldon SWR 1973
A Column Still Rum from Guyana, bottled by Velier, at 60,5%.
What do the letters on a Demerara label mean? The RumX guide ›
About the Skeldon distillery
The Skeldon distillery is located in Guyana. Rums from Skeldon have been reviewed 875 times with an average of 8.9/10.
To Skeldon ›Read on in the RumX Guide
You may also enjoy
Rum enthusiasts who like this rum have also given the following rums high ratings:
Velier Albion AW 1986
Cadenhead's Uitvlugt PM 1964
Velier Uitvlugt UF30E UF30E 1985
Cadenhead's Uitvlugt PM 1964
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