Description
Here we go with the brand new and exceptionally funky 3rd Requiem Rum release from Tin Shed Distilling – The Requiem ‘Tom Brennan’!
Like all the Requiem rums from Tin Shed Distilling, the Tom Brennan is copper pot stilled, non-chill filtered, molasses-based rum with nothing added. Just a South Australian funk bomb rum in all its natural glory. Matured for 3 and a half years in American Oak ex-Sherry casks, then finished for 3 more months in Port casks. Only 315 bottles of Tom Brennan are available worldwide and the Tribe have first dibs!
Plum pudding, Rum balls, egg nog and Christmas cake – even more reasons a big rum is in demand this time of year! For these and many more festive seasons needs we offer the latest release from our mate Ian Schmidt down at Tin Shed Distilling.
By definition, a ‘Requiem’ is a final mass, a prayer for the dead, a final tribute. Each release of the ‘Requiem’ brand will pay tribute to a ship, wrecked or lost at sea – and to the seafarers who sailed in those ships.
In this case, the Tom Brennan has a most unusual story. Not quite a ship, the Tom Brennan (also known as MV Tom Brennan) was a barge built in the Australian state of South Australia in 1949 for use as a ferry at the crossing of the Birdsville Track over Cooper Creek when the creek was in flood in what is now the state’s Far North region. It is described as being “a steel punt with airtight tanks, powered by a 4 horse power outboard motor.” The vessel was named after Mr. T. R. Brennan, the Livestock Manager with Dalgety & Co. Ltd, who is attributed as having the idea to provide a ferry service. It was withdrawn from service in either 1960 or 1963 and since 1986, it has served as a monument.
Our Tasting Notes
This is a serious pot still rum for grown-ups, with no added sugar or spices, no added colour and non-chill filtered; and no better way to raise a glass to those in peril on the high seas – or those who visit during the silly season!
Nose: Wow – big funky flambéed bananas and fresh grassy notes, as well as some Keen’s curry-powder along for the ride, with just a little nail-polishey vibe there as well. And as always from the Tin Shed stills – that signature leather note as well – although well subdued here. Did I mention funky?
Palate: A bit drier on the palate at first than I expected, but then sweet, slightly over-ripe fruit salad with just a little background pepper. I do get a suggestion of a curry-powder type spices there as well, but much less prominently than on the nose.
Finish: A nice long and chewy finish. Those bananas come right back at ya, chased by that pepper but also rounded out by sweet brown sugar notes.
The ‘Tom Brennan’ is a much more ‘Jamaican’ style rum than the previous Requiem (SV Songvaar) we’ve featured – way more of those funky tropical notes and significantly less of the oakey overtones. It still retains some of the ‘Tin Shed leathery-ness’ that I associate with all the brown spirits I’ve tasted form this distillery, but in this case it is very much diminished.
At 46% ABV, there’s plenty of ‘oomph’ and a liberal dosing of ‘kapow’. A great bug funky monkey mouth-bomb, by any standard. This is gold-class rum by a country mile. Kudos, Mr Schmidt!
From the Distillers
Nose: An initial hit of lightweight funk that quickly fades to seaweed on the beach at low tide
Pear drops, orange peel, polished wood.
Palate: Marmalade, parchment, honey
Finish: Gently warming with lingering honey and a touch of molasses in the tail.
About Tin Shed Distilling
Tin Shed Distillery was established in 2010 by Ian Schmidt and long time drinking buddy Vic Orlow. Ian is a straight talker with little time for fake extravagances – and his distillery certainly reflects this attitude. From the unassuming front door, through to the utilitarian stacks and rows of ageing whisky, to the small stills – this is grassroots craft distilling at it’s finest!
There’s no ‘Visitors Centre’ here (although Ian welcomes visitors by appointment) – the distillery is the visitors centre. What you get is plain and simple – almost spartan. A distillery, bond store, bottling plant and office all under one roof. It’s all about the spirits at Tin Shed Distilling.
What Tin Shed Distilling lacks in size, flashyness or ‘pomp’ it certainly makes up for in the quality of it’s products. Ian and Vic’s philosophy is ‘only bottle what we like to drink’ – and the results of this attitude were apparent from day one. The very first batch of their Iniquity Single Malt Whisky made the Whisky Bible’s ‘Liquid Gold’ list in 2015 with a score of 94 –described as “a gorgeous experience”. Subsequent whisky bottling have won many accolades and now it’s Tin Shed’s rums turn in the spotlight!
Whilst awards are great, with a distillery as small as Tin Shed, they don’t drive sales. As Ian puts it – “by the time the results are out, we’ve sold all of the spirit we entered”. What’s more important to the boys at Iniquity is feedback from ‘the Den’ (Tin Shed’s members club) and the drinking public at whisky shows. Love this rum – then join Iniquity’s ‘the Den’ and stay up to date with all new Iniquity releases and everything that’s happening at Tin Shed Distilling.
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