Aroma visualization from community tastings
Bristol Caroni HTR 1997
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Tar, burned rubber and old leather hit first, exactly the "dirty" Caroni signature people chase. Underneath there's a surprising streak of red fruit and dried cherry, then a long, dry, tobacco-and-oak finish. At 61.5% the alcohol reads well-integrated for most, though a couple found it too hot and slightly one-dimensional. A textbook Trinidad profile, not a subtle one.
The community says- Textbook Caroni funk
- Long dry finish
- But: High ABV heat
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How does Bristol Caroni HTR 1997 taste?
Summarized by AI from community reviews.
Classic dirty Caroni: tar, rubber, dry oak Most tasters get the classic tar-rubber-leather Caroni and love it, some calling it "very addictive." A few felt the finish falls short or it leans a touch one-note.
Caroni fans who chase tar, rubber and dry funk
Anyone wanting sweet, easy sipping or avoiding high ABV heat
Style & occasion: Mature & oakySipping neat
Full aroma profile Aroma families · nose & palate · top aromas
Relative to this rum's strongest aroma family
29 of 62 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
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Recommendation
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First choice: 23 of 29 tasters who tried both prefer it.
What does the community say?
62 community reviews
22 selected write-ups on this page, all of them in the RumX app
Rate it in the app
Positive from 8.0 · Mixed 6.0–7.9 · Critical below 6.0
Review by Frank
RumX Advent Calendar, 18.12., blind.First impression: clearly Caroni! Dirty fruity, not too complicated, >60%. Good.Nose: as said, pleasantly dirty fruity, strong and complex. Sweet tar and burnt rubber. Red currant and a very slight hint of mint. Back polish and cold smoke.Palate: powerful and complex on the palate as well. Dry and woody and salty-bitter at the start. Then gum rub and polish, maybe some dried cherry and grapefruit. Very drinkable and beautiful Caroni representative.
Review by Mirco
Distinctive smoky notes with tar, rubber, and old wood shape the profile. The rum shows a nice depth and complexity typical of Caroni. Despite its power, it feels well-balanced and stays interesting in the glass.
Review by SaibotZtar
RumX Advent calendar 2021 Day 18
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
This is an OK Caroni, but it's like something is missing and I can't put my finger in it. The price on release I'd say was pretty good. The nose is typical Caroni with tar and rubber followed by smoky wood, fruit, leather and light vanilla. The palate is intanese and spicy and also starts with tar and rubber trailed by smoky wood and dried fruit and light vanilla. The finish is long with smoky wood, tar, rubber and spices.
Review by DomM
Quite nice combination of classic Caroni notes and some sweet and fruity flavors.
Review by MarcT
Tasted blind, did not recognize Caroni typical elements at all.
Review by Thunderbird
Typical Caronino notes... not as intense as many others, but overall round and harmonious! With a longer finish more points would have been possible... very tasty
Review by Tschusikowsky
RumX Advent Calendar 18.12.21: horny Caroni, I really like. Vintage, bottler-no idea, he just tastes😋
Review by Galli33
#18 RumXCalendar Blind tasting: Nose: dirty, rubber, tar, woody, glue, leather M: dirty, woody, bitter, asteingend, oak, tar, spicy, burnt sugar F: wood, tannins, oak, vanilla Prediction: It‘s definitely a caroni, approx. 60% and approx. 20 years …. It’s a good dirty caroni, but lacks in the finish…very disapponiting Nose: woody, tar, rubber, bycycle tube, dirty, glue, leather Mouth: bitter, astringend, tar, smoky, heavy, woody(oak), burnt sugar, peat, raisins, roasted and tobacco Finish: short, astringend, oak, vanilla, rubber, tannins, tobacco, earthy, peat,
Review by alex
You definitely get the Caroni markers. First on the nose, sensational, and after a little airing, delicious on the palate, a treat, I love it. Superb length for the finish 😍😍😍
Review by Christian Rudt
What the fxxx? When you always hear about dirty caronis, you probably mean rums like this one. You are immediately greeted by a lot of tar and rubber in the nose, it smells oily, a bit like a gas station. On the palate, let the tar machine😅 breathe first. A challenge with a lot of wood, a little fruit comes through, some tobacco with a slight smokiness in the finish that I really like here. Nose 86: by now I have energy drink in delicious in the nose Palate: 85 you have to like this dirty profile. Finish: 87 nice and intense
Review by Christoph
Very "typical" Trinidad nose that quickly hints at Caroni. The taste is then, besides the again typical dirt, unexpectedly fruity sweet without being intrusive. The finish is like chewing sandy silt mixed with tobacco. Very dry and lasting. Very nice that this was bottled with so much ABV and the alcohol is so well integrated. After standing longer, the tar becomes extreme (positively).
Review by Stylo
Nose: nice opening with fresh menthol notes, along with dirtier, dustier flavors (pencil shavings, medicine, Fusel oil, just a hint of diesel to it). You can also clearly sense some wood from the barrel. Then it’s the turn of tar and glue. With some agitation, you can get some fruity notes of cherries and prunes Palate: ah, classical, dirty Caroni..wonderful.. a nice mix of red fruits, some charred wood, then slightly less tar and more medicine. Nice proof, also. Finish: long, bitter and even dirtier. Still some charred wood, bitter licorice, menthol. Stands really well against Velier’s ;)
Review by Rene Pfeiffer
Day 18 RumX Advent Calendar: Nose: even after hours in the glass comes first alcohol. Then dirty to charred, spicy and smoky. Palate: and alcohol again. A little water opened things up a bit. Basically the aromas remain as on the nose, in the finish something slightly fresh towards menthol. For me in the result too alcoholic and not round. No idea what it was until the dissolution. Again a Caroni. The last Caroni from the Advent calendar I found better, because rounder. This one is too brisk for me.
Review by Jakob
Cross tasting 1997 Caronis from continental aging: Very close to the sister releases from Bristol, the HTR DNA is clearly recognizable in all. My favorite is the youngest release of the series thanks to its expressive 'youthfulness', but we are consistently at a high level.
Review by Christoph H.
On the nose rather dirty with tar, bicycle tube and plastic. Clear cask influence with smoke, roasted aromas, spices but slightly sweet and warm caramel notes. On the palate first slightly sweet and oily, then the cask pushes through and asserts itself with distinct roasted, smoky and bitter notes. Overall, the rum shows rather on the dry side. I'm generally not a fan of the 97 vintage and here too I miss the pleasing, sweet, fruity and rounded character like for example in the 96 vintage. Nevertheless, this can be called a good rum.
Review by Pavel Spacek
... Caroni is a distillery from Trinidad, producing in its heyday a rum that was added in a ratio of 1:10 to naval blends. It was too strong and strange to be pleasant on the tongue. The distillery ended production and was closed in 2000. Only in 2010 did tasters appear who liked the rum precisely for its special taste. And interest grew. Caroni belongs to the category of rums 'you need to try before you die.' I recommend it, Caroni is truly a unique rum.
Review by Benoit Mahe
A Caroni that goes a bit in all directions.
Review by Michael Schou
08-11-2025 - Rate 9.0 Last time I tasted this Caroni it was good, but I really liked this night. Perhaps the build up was better this time around or I was in a really good mood. Classic nose with tar, rubber, leather and wood. Palate is also as you would expect from a Caroni. Lots of tar and rubber. Long finish dominated by tar and leather. 27-03-2026 - Rate 9.2
Review by Casper Nielsen
Duft: Tobak og mørnet lædertaske, frugt (overmoden mango/ananas). Smag: Fuld fart på i bedste Caroni-stil, men mangler noget “tropisk” fylde. Frugt og brændt træ, oliedampe og pibetobak.
Review by Tom Buteneers
RumXmas #18, blind I would dare to say Caroni because of the dirty feeling. Don’t ask me which one, I only had a few. So that’s way too difficult. Dirty and lots of wood in the mouth and a bit of a burn from the alcohol, guessing somewhere around 60%. Astringent and woody bitter notes in the finish that’s long lasting. There’s a little bit of fruity sweetness on the tip of the tongue at the beginning, but I find it fastly evolving towards wood and bitterness. It’s complex (as in: not that accessible), but alsomaybe a bit too one-dimensional. Not the best Caroni I’ve had so far, but not bad either. My honest opinion is that I don’t find the bottle worthy of it’s price tag. But that’s more often the case with Caroni nowadays.
Review by Carumba
Tar and burned rubber but at a nice mellow level. Very addictive.
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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 In Spiritus Veritas
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Community shelf
81 bottles logged by 58 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
13% opened, 5 emptied.
What did the community pay for Bristol Caroni HTR 1997?
Community paid 120–258 €.
Purchase prices reported by members, not a shop price. Avg. 339 €. Full price & collection history in RX+ ›
81 purchased · 63 tasted · 20 wishlist · as of
Details about Bristol Caroni HTR 1997
A rum from Trinidad, bottled by Bristol Classic Rum, at 61,5%.
Read on in the RumX Guide
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