Alambique Serrano 4 Años Single Cask #804 - “S.K.A.R.C.H.”
Reviewer: Pickwick
Distillery: Alambique Serrano
Origin: Oaxaca, Mexico
Bottle Size: 700 ml
Bottle Count: 294
ABV: 51.8%
Distilled: February 2022
Base Material: Sugarcane juice
Still: Krassel column still
Aging specs: Aged at origin in ex-bourbon barrels for 39 months; finished in an ex-Cabernet Sauvignon French oak cask for 11 months
Bottled: June 2026
Nose: Red currants, cucumber, wine grapes, sweet oak
Palate: Caramel, watermelon, sarsaparilla, spearmint, wisp of smoke
Finish: Lingering watermelon lightness
Before it even hit shelves in its limited American markets, word on the street had it that “SKARCH” (a name chosen to honor a brand of Mexican bottled water that was consumed by the American crew who selected this cask on their visit) was another infamous Alambique Serrano watermelon bomb along the lines of Pico Canoa. And if that one, with its 574 bottles, flew off the shelves (albeit in wider release), this one never had a chance. One store near me, not usually a frenzy of rum activity, rapidly sold out of one case; by the time I managed to claim a bottle for myself, they had sold another case in less than 24 hours.
In truth, I always found the Pico Canoa hype train a little overblown. It’s great rum, don’t get me wrong, but not necessarily once-in-a-lifetime stuff befitting the speed with which it was snapped up. Indeed, along comes SKARCH to prove once again (following the second edition of Tres Años) that the Krassels haven’t yet exhausted their supply of whatever production run generated all those watermelon notes. Alambique Serrano has rapidly climbed the charts to become probably my second-favorite distillery (respectfully, Hampden is more or less unpassable), and this bottling is a good example of why - although it’s also an example of what can be slightly frustrating about Alambique Serrano.
See, Alambique Serrano, if you don’t know, releases a lot of stuff. There are always new single casks releasing, there’s a whole new Vida Nativa series coming out shortly, and there are bar and store picks all over the place. That one guy on Reddit aside, it’s nearly impossible to taste every Alambique Serrano release, let alone own them all. You’ve got to make decisions. (Frankly, it’s always a bummer when I buy an AS release and it doesn’t hit for me, because now that’s another AS release that I’d probably like more but won’t have the space to acquire!)
Like most Alambique Serranos I’ve had, this bottle contains great rum. I’ve long been impressed by what the Krassels have been able to do with relatively young cane juice, which historically has been less my speed, but so far it seems clear to me that the additional aging time of the 4 Años series has only been of further benefit to the end product. The red wine cask finish definitely comes through on the nose, but on the palate you’ve got a lot of sweet notes and a fairly fat, chewy mouthfeel. On raw taste I would probably put this one ahead of Pico Canoa; to the extent that that one really hits like spa water, this one presents to me as both heavier and more complex. Just working through the half-ounce taster I poured for this review, I went from a sweet caramel start to an almost root beer-like midpoint, and notes of mint really started to pop out towards the end. The watermelon notes are really big on the finish, as the light taste of watermelon flesh lingers behind on the tongue after the sip has passed. It’s a 4 on taste for sure, another easy winner from the Krassels.
With that being said, this one falls in the very middle of the Haste scale for me simply because it’s just… another excellent Alambique Serrano rum. If you see this at the store, sure, buy it, but let’s face it: there’s going to be another Alambique Serrano rum at least this good on the shelves very soon. (Depending on where you live, there might be another one right now, which I’ll address when I get around to reviewing the Binny’s Beverage Depot 4 Años pick.) So yeah, it’s really good stuff, but AS is such a prolific distillery that the bottle has to be truly special before I’m inclined to rate it as an absolute must-buy. Great rum; not unmissable.
Taste/Haste Scale: 4 / 3
