Mount Gay was founded in 1703, making it the oldest rum producer in the world. John Sober inherited a small distillery at the top of Mount Gilboa, in the parish of Saint Lucy, Barbados. In 1947, he put Sir John Gay Alleyne in charge of the distillery. Sober was so impressed by Sir John’s work that he renamed the distillery after him in 1801. The estate was then taken over by Aubrey Fitz-Osbert Ward in 1918 and remained in the family until his son’s death in 1989. The French group Rémy Cointreau became the majority shareholder and bought the remain shares from Ward’s heirs in 2014. The rums produced are normally a combination of spirit distilled in column and pot stills, but the brand is also known for its single pot stills and triple distillations.

This bottling is part of a series of four magnums created by La Maison du Whisky and Velier, comprising a Hampden 5 year old, a Foursquare 16 year old, a Saint James 15 year old and a Mount Gay 14 year old. Each bottling is illustrated with a photo from Elliott Erwitt, who has been a member of the Magnum agency since 1953. Mount Gay 14 Year Old is a very old, intense and unique expression from the iconic Barbados brand. It is distilled only in a pot still and is never blended with spirit from a column still, unlike Mount Gay’’s official releases. It is a pure representation of the distillery’’s very essence. Distilled in 2007, it spends 14 years in American white oak casks in the tropical climate of Barbados, which makes it extremely concentrated but beautifully elegant. Bottled at 60% ABV. The photo on the label was taken in California in Pacific Palisades in 1999.