Rating: 
Planters Gold: Pyrat XO
www.pyratrum.com
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from Internet Wines and Spirits
Whatever you may say about Pyrat Rums, one thing is certain – nobody presents their product better. Whether you’ve acquired their top-of-the-line Cask 23, or if you’ve selected their more affordable XO Reserve, in either case you get a glorious handblown bottle – complete with cork, ribbons, and a medallion of Hoti (the god of bartenders.) This is how rum was meant to be packaged, and I’ve yet to find another that comes even close.
I haven’t had the opportunity to taste Cask 23 and XO Reserve side-by-side, but it strikes me that they’re extremely similar (excepting, of course, the phenominal price difference.) Like Cask 23, XO Reserve smells sweet and musky. When drinking it neat, it has a slight heaviness as it tingles across the tongue. But it’s on the rocks that this rum truly blooms, transforming the subdued heaviness into a sharper, almost citrusy sensation.
If you’re a fan of rum&cokes, Pyrat XO Reserve might be a nice trade-up for you. When served on ice, its sweetness is very reminiscent of rum&cokes, but more complex and “grown up.”
note: This review pertains to the “old” Pyrat XO. Please check out my Pyrat Rum XO Side-by-Side Taste Test.
It’s been 2 years since I’ve seen a bottle of this glorious elixir; one of my relatives got me a bottle for my 21st birthday. Unfortunately, I haven’t seen a bottle of it in any of the local liquor stores.
Today, while I was out restocking my Goslings supply in preparation for my 23rd birthday, I did see some bottles of Pyrat Pistol. I was wondering if you could give a comparison between Pistol and XO.
Please tell me what the ribbon on the pyrate rum bottle neck signifies.