Unique flavor and body but not a perfect specimen

I was excited to try Pyrat given it's high hype and ties to Patron which, Cafe XO aside, I find to offer a great line of liquor.

Upon opening my bottle I was dissappointed to find the cork was extremely dry and actually crumbled upon opening.  I can accept this in a cheap wine but if you can't properly cork an "ultra premium" rum, then don't bother with the frivolity.

The nose on Pyrat is at once alchol laden but lends slight floral and sugar cane notes that overcome the strong initial scent.  Other notes we noticed were orange, tobacco, cherry and cocoa.

Served Straight pyrat was on the harsh side with a very distinct tobacco, carmel and cherry flavoring.  Among the group of 3 tasters none were immediately impressed with the flavor except to say it was highly distinctive.  That isn't to say it was bad by any means.  it was smooth on the toungue and held most flavor at the front of the mouth.  The tobacco flavor is evident foremost.

Upon mixing with Coca-Cola the tobacco flavor remains and the inital orange nose comes through strongly.  The Pyrat rum and coke recieved mixed reviews.  The distinct taste was appreciated if not enjoyed.  When tasted back to back with coke mixed using Flor de Cana 4 year and coke mixed using Appleton Estate V/X, Reviewers felt Pyrat & coke was a poor example of the rum & coke.

As a group we felt Pyrat was HIGHLY distinctive and the tobacco notes were percieved by all three reviewers.  One reviewer offered that Pyrat would do well in the hands of a mixologist who could build upon it's unique flavor.  Additionally none of the reviewers felt Pyrat was a good replacement as a standard dark rum in their bar because the flavor was too overwhelming in most situations and stood out from a typical rum based offering.

In summary, a very distinct well crafted liquor which we feel has excellent potential because of it's strong tobacco characteristics, but poor substitute in standard rum fare because of it's distinct flavor.