Planteray Hogo Monsta Rum

Planteray Hogo Monsta is designed exclusively as a cocktail modifier—use just a few drops (seriously, a little goes a long way) to add explosive tropical funk and complexity to tiki drinks, daiquiris, or any rum cocktail that needs a wild, aromatic boost, though it's far too intense to sip neat or even on the rocks. Its bold, fruit-forward character makes it perfect for warm-weather entertaining and pairs beautifully with spicy Caribbean dishes, jerk chicken, grilled pineapple, or anything that can stand up to its powerful personality.

Nose: Intensely funky and pungent, bursting with overripe tropical fruit—fermented banana, bruised pineapple, and concentrated mango. Strong notes of varnish and acetone cut through, followed by green olive brine, rubber, and a hit of clove spice. There's an oily, almost industrial quality mixed with sweet molasses and hints of fermenting fruit salad. This isn't subtle—it announces itself from across the room.

Palate: Dense and oily in texture, coating the mouth immediately. The tropical fruit character amplifies—overripe banana dominates, backed by pineapple funk and papaya. Sharp solvent notes mix with salty olive brine and black pepper spice. There's a medicinal quality alongside the sweetness, with touches of iodine, rubber, and brown sugar. The alcohol heat at 56.6% is noticeable but balanced by the sheer intensity of flavor.

Finish: Long and persistent, clinging to the palate with oily viscosity. The funky ester notes linger—fermented fruit, varnish, and brine fade slowly. Warmth builds gradually, leaving behind dried tropical fruit, spice, and a slight chemical edge that eventually mellows into sweet molasses and banana bread.

Planteray Hogo Monsta undergoes an extended 2-3 week fermentation using wild yeasts before being distilled entirely in pot stills at Barbados' Stade's West Indies Rum Distillery, resulting in an astronomical 2,029 grams per hectoliter of esters—making it the highest-ester rum ever released commercially and a concentrated flavor bomb that transforms cocktails with just a few drops.

• Hogo Monsta contains 2,029 grams per hectoliter of esters—that's roughly 20 times more than a typical rum. Those esters are what give this spirit its wildly funky, overripe tropical fruit character. In fact, it's so concentrated that Master Distiller Richard Seale recommends using just a few drops to transform a Mai Tai, not a full pour. Think of it as the hot sauce of the rum world: a little goes a dangerously delicious long way.
• The "Hogo" in Hogo Monsta comes from an old English corruption of the French phrase "haut goût," meaning "high taste" or "strong flavor." Caribbean distillers adopted the term centuries ago to describe the funky, aromatic intensity found in rums made with wild fermentation and long aging of the wash. It's a flavor profile that was prized in the 18th and 19th centuries but nearly vanished as modern rum production became cleaner and lighter. Hogo Monsta brings back that lost language of funk.
• This rum was never intended to exist as a commercial product. High-ester distillation runs like this are typically Master Blenders' secret weapons—small batches produced to add complexity and depth to larger blends, then locked away in the distillery. Alexandre Gabriel decided to bottle it straight because he wanted rum lovers to experience what distillers have been hoarding for themselves. It's like getting access to a chef's private pantry of intensely concentrated flavor bombs.