Post #360707 by The Gnomon on Tue, Feb 12, 2008 7:10 AM

Meyers is Jamaican and dark, but outside of that it's not very good. Very pricey for the quality (lack thereof).

Do yourself a favor and start exploring the family of rums produced by the Wray & Nephew (W&N) clan (owns Appleton). Your first stop should be Coruba, since you are looking for a dark Jamaican. I'd also like to find a dark Jamaican, but she should be slender and about 5 or so feet tall.

You can bypass the Appleton White and Appleton Special, but Appleton Estate (AE) V/X, Reserve (8 yr), Extra (12 yr), on up are worthwhile, even though they might not always be worth the price. Extra, which I tend to over use, goes for about $26 per 750 ml around here and 21 (yr old) goes for $116 (forget it). W&N White Overproof takes some getting used to, but it is a staple around my house. When my local liquor stores run out, I call the County Executive's Office to complain. :)

The Appleton Estate rums V/X through 21 are considered dark rums, generally, in that they are darker than amber/gold. The older the rum, the darker it is, but even at its darkest it is kind of a mahogany color, not chocolate brown like Meyers or Coruba. Back in the 70's, before I knew any better, I used to drink Meyers. Once I found Coruba, it was like night and day. Now I find it difficult to even take a sip of Meyers.

My typical Mai Tai has 1½ oz of Coruba, 1½ oz of Mount Gay Eclipse, and a 1 oz floater of AE Extra (usually). I will often use AE V/X instead of the Eclipse. In addition, if I happen to have a premium rum available (Pyrat, Eldorado, on up), I'll use Extra instead of the Eclipse, but I still keep the Coruba.

Oops! Forgot to mention that then the premium rum becomes the floater.

You might want to check out Scottes' Rum Pages or PM him for his 2¢. He'll probably be glad to give you a whole nickel. 8)

[ Edited by: The Gnomon 2008-02-12 12:54 ]