Savanna Agricole 2012 Single Cask 6 Year Old #218 50cl / HERR Japan Tribute

The Savanna distillery is the oldest on the Île de la Réunion, established in 1870 by Olive Lemarchand and at the time known as Parc à Jacques. The Domain of Savanna was formed six years later, with records showing the distillery producing rum principally from a molasses wash. This facility operated until the 1940s when Émile Hugot consolidated a number of sugar factories, including Savanna, to form the Bourbon Sugar Company. The original Savanna distillery in Saint Paul continued to operate until 1992 when it was relocated to its current location in Bois-Rouge. Despite expanding the distillery in 1995 and again 1999, The Bourbon Sugar Company divested from rum in 2001, and the distillery passed through various hands to its current ownership, Tereos in France. The distillery’s creole column still dates from 1964, and under the guidance of master distiller and rum-savant, Laurent Broc, produces a wide range of traditional and agricole rums, including the much-lauded Grand Arôme. Some distilling also take place on a tiny alembic pot still.

This rhum agricole was distilled on their creole column still in 2012 and aged tropically for 6 years on Reunion Island. Titled HERR Japan Trinute, this was finished in the same cask that a legendary release of their HERR (high ester rum) was matured in prior to bottling in 2017 as an exclusive for Bar Lamp and Shinanoya in Tokyo.

This 2019 release is one of 647 bottles.