Aroma visualization from community tastings
Velier Caroni 33th Release High Proof Heavy Trinidad Rum HTR 1998
Loved by Jakob, cigares & 59 more
For experienced palates: a 16‑year Velier Caroni 1998 at 55% that balances classic dirty garage notes with caramel sweetness, dried fruits and smoke. RumX members praise its harmony, drinkability and long, warm finish.
Aggregated from 64 community reviews.
- Balanced dirtiness
- Great drinkability
- Well integrated alcohol
+10
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Stern Magazine Details about Velier Caroni 33th Release High Proof Heavy Trinidad Rum HTR 1998
A Column Still Rum from Trinidad, bottled by Velier, at 55%.
How does Velier Caroni 33th Release High Proof Heavy Trinidad Rum HTR 1998 taste?
Aggregated from 64 community reviews.
Balanced, approachable classic Caroni funk For experienced palates: a 16‑year Velier Caroni 1998 at 55% that balances classic dirty garage notes with caramel sweetness, dried fruits and smoke. RumX members praise its harmony, drinkability and long, warm finish.
Seasoned enthusiasts who enjoy classic Caroni tar, rubber and workshop notes softened by caramel, dried fruits and smoke at a relatively approachable 55%.
Beginners or those sensitive to high ABV and dirty, industrial flavors who prefer soft, sweet, easy-going rums.
How is Velier Caroni 33th Release High Proof Heavy Trinidad Rum HTR 1998 rated?
RumX's 0–10 scale is strict , 8.9 lands squarely in the "Very good" 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
A selection of the most popular reviews from our community. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by Jakob
Epic Velier Caroni Tasting 2023: Round 98 Caroni with pleasant sweetness and thanks to the somewhat lower alcohol strength almost an easy sipping rum - as far as one can speak of it with Caroni. In direct comparison with the other Velier Caroni releases in the lower midfield on the way, which is still enough for a very good rating without effort - and once again highlights the almost unique quality of these rums.
Review by cigares
Tasted in a restaurant and the bottle is well underway. A beautiful nose where tropical fruits come first. There's also a nose of bourbon, leather and brown sugar with a little tar. On the palate, the fruit explodes with alcohol. Hardly any dirty notes on the palate, astonishing! The finish is long, with a little bitterness, lots of fruit and a lingering smokiness. The empty glass offers plenty of fruit with some machine shop notes. Edit: re-tasted blind in the RumX advent calendar, day 24 and even though I didn't recognize it, I confirm my rating.
Review by Joachim Guger
Excellent, very drinkable Caroni. A little more focus on dried fruit, which I personally like very much. Enough burning tires. Anyone else have a bottle?
Review by Maxence
This Caroni has a quite classic profile from 1998 vintage with famous garage notes, dried fruits and wood on the nose. But, it offers some surprising salty notes on the palate. A really good surprise !
Review by Oliver
Very nice Caroni at a perfect drinking strength. Great nose, but on the palate it falls a little.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
A very nice Caroni from Velier. A bit of fruit with the typical rubber notes from nose to finish. There is a hint of caramel in there as well with the herbs, tobacco and spice. A nice long finish with som nuttyness to it. Try and nose the glass after a few hours, lovely Caroni rubber and tar notes.
Review by TheRhumhoe
A rather mellow, round and gourmet Caroni. The nose delivers some typical dirty notes of tar and rubber, with the caramel, burnt sugar and toffee found on lighter profiles in the background. Wood, spices (vanilla, pepper), chocolate, nuts and dried fruit form a dangerously attractive whole. Leather, tobacco and smoky notes add a little character so as not to overindulge. A classic but effective profile. On the palate, it's a soft, discreet Caroni that comes through with its sweet, caramelized notes. Spices accompany this sweetness with a warmth, followed by wood, leather, espresso coffee, dark chocolate and a hint of tobacco that lend a little bitterness. The sweet-sour-bitter triptych isn't the most complex, but it gives a nice balance on the palate. Terpenic and fruity flavors are more subdued. The alcohol is well integrated. The finish is fairly long, with more roasted, smoky, spicy and bitter aromas. Chocolate, coffee, leather, wood and spice are more present, while sweet caramel comes later, but still sensually. Softness is the order of the day on this conventional Caroni profile, easy to drink but lacking a little extravagance.
Review by RumTaTa
Very balanced on the nose, especially dark dried fruits, roasted aromas, vanilla and a little Caroniwerkstatt. Confirmation on the palate, this seems to be a Caroni. Quite full-bodied and alcoholic. Very dry and quite bitter towards the finish. Rated just "very good" due to the bitterness Alcohol ~63% I don't have enough experience with Caroni to name a specific bottling. ----- I was way too high with the alcohol content. But I almost thought so, as I ate a crispy kebab today and the micro-injuries caused by the "sharp-edged" flatbread on my gums make the rum seem sharper than it is.
Review by Mirco
Balanciert rauchige Teer- und Gumminoten mit weichen Tropenfrüchten und zarter Karamellsüße. Er wirkt zugänglicher als viele Caronis, steht aber dennoch klar in der Tradition dank seiner typischen Schmutz- und Werkstattanmutung. Das Mundgefühl ist voll, mit präsenter Holzwürze und feiner Frische. Der Abgang bleibt mittellang, angenehm trocken und würzig.
Review by Tom Buteneers
RumXmas 24/24 From the start it’s clear that it’s Caroni territory today. Not even gonna bother to try and define a specific bottle and just enjoy it. All components are present in great harmony. Alcohol is very well integrated. It has to be said that it’s “only 55%” which is relatively modest in Caroni terms. Two years ago I tasted this for the first time and scored it 9.2. I can still understand why. I’ve had others that I’ve rated higher. But that’s not what this is about today. I’ll leave the mark how it was. I feel it still deserves it. And it’s not like I’m in the mood to compare it to something else directly right now. Much gratitude to the RumX team for the overall quality of the Advent Calendar. It’s beyond 👏
Review by Timo Groeger
RumX Advent Calendar 2024 Day 24: On Christmas Eve there will be the Caroni ;-). Also has the typical Caroni notes such as rubber and tar on the nose, as well as some tobacco. Then also rubber and tar on the palate, as well as smoky and spicy. Successful.
Review by Serge
Rum X Advent calendar post-tasting, door 24 ... Also tastes good with a little more late-January sunshine and is immediately recognizable as Caroni. Sweet-nutty-fruity-dirty 98 nose. Compared to other vintages not a high flyer but still strong against most continental ones of the vintage. Finish rather not so long
Review by Pavel Spacek
... 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 zabo
RumX Advent Calendar 2024 Day 24 You guys are crazy what you put in there at the end 😅 A really great 98, so elegant, almost easy sipping (in a very positive way) but at a very high level without losing complexity.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
Excellent Caroni with a really nice smoke and dirt note, but also neat burnt caramel, fresh espresso and dried fruit, orange peel and some mint and walnut, as well as burnt caramel on the finish. Very tasty and well-balanced, only the finish could be more intense and longer....
Expert reviews
Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by Barrel Aged Thoughts
Read full review →
Expert review by The Fat Rum Pirate
"For me I felt it had just enough fruitiness to keep it interesting and enjoyable throughout. If you can find a bottle at a reasonable price then go for it. This is more than a decent example of Caroni rum without doubt. This might be Velier Caroni No Smoking but..."Read full review →
Community purchases
119 bottles logged by 85 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
8% opened, 5 emptied and repurchased.
What does Velier Caroni 33th Release High Proof Heavy Trinidad Rum HTR 1998 cost?
Community paid €40–€1,144.
Current best price: €994.92 – 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+ →
119 purchased · 66 tasted · 35 wishlist · as of
About the Caroni distillery
The Caroni distillery is located in Trinidad. Rums from Caroni have been reviewed 10,195 times with an average of 8.8/10.
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Oliver · FounderBy rum lovers, for rum lovers
I'm Oliver, together with Jakob, Robert and Lukas, we started RumX in 2018 as a small passion project in Stuttgart, back then under the name Rum Tasting Notes.
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