Background
Though MHOBA has become the international darling of African rum producers, they certainly aren’t the only Africans producing interesting rum. Brought to us by French IB Compangie Des Indes as a part of their “Great Whites” line, this Ghanaian rum* was pot distilled from cane juice in 2020 and bottled without aging at 50% in 2022.
Tasting
On the nose, I get cherry pit, bitter almond, flowers, mint, and olives. The aroma is weirdly reminiscent of kirschwasser. Water pulls out some more deli notes like dill pickles and dijon mustard.
The palate does away with most of the deli toppings, opting instead for more cherries, bitter almond, and flowers. I also get dill (without the pickles), Meyer lemon, vanilla meringue, and honeydew melon. There’s lots of flavor here, but I wouldn’t describe it as particularly challenging.
Verdict
A fine introduction to Ghanaian rum. The profile is like a cross between cherry eau de vie and Martinican grand arôme. If I were tasting this blind, I think I would have guessed that this was some weird kirschwasser or maybe himbeergeist. Though it doesn’t come across as being weak or watery, I think it could be even better at a higher strength. While I don’t plan to seek out a full bottle at this time, I’m glad to know that Ghana is yet another nation producing unique and tasty cane spirits. (6/10)
*The distillery of this rum has not been officially disclosed by CDI (they have “Mid West Ghana” on the bottle, which is more of a geographical note, not an actual distillery). That said, the appearance of other IB Ghanas who disclose the distillery makes it almost certain that this is from a producer called MIM Spirits. Mim is primarily a cashew and sugarcane farm which also operates a distillery managed by “a young Dane with a passion for spirits,” according to a Reddit comment from The Lone Caner.