What is Your favorite Rum?

I just picked up a bottle of Appleton Estate VX tonight for $12.76 at Savon Drugs, the were having a closout sale.

Cheers,

KT

Appleton XV for $13? Not bad. It usually sells for $18 to $20 here at regular retail, so you got a good price!

Pablus: I've seen both the light and dark Cohiba Rums at one of my nearby Hoity Toity Cigar shops (in Fashion Island!, now how HT is that!?). Anyway, the shop owner raved about it, of course, but I haven't run into anyone that's actually tried it. I believe it was about a $35 or $40 bottle (girl not included..at least not at that price.)

SugarCaddyDaddy's SoCal Hoity Toity Schedule!

[ Edited by: SugarCaddyDaddy on 2003-08-07 23:57 ]

Whoa!!!! I bought a bottle of Cohiba gold rum in San Jose last year for $11! Don't be fooled by the name. It's a decent gold rum, better than Bacardi, but nothing too special. I'll pour you some the next time your up and you can see for yourself. Don't spend that much! Take that cash and buy some single barrel Cruzan instead! Or anything else!

Not really a big deal, but I got back from France last week, and I picked up an amber Rhum St James, haven't tried it yet. I also saw Havana Club, that I considered picking up, so I can officially call my self a smuggler. I did see other Martinique rums that I've never seen before. I would of gotten it if my suitcase wasn't full of Alsatian wine.

I came across this rum by accident when I was touring the French Polynesian islands.
On the island of Marie Galante, the intire economy is based on sugar cane.

It's called Bielle Rhum Vieux
A French rum only available in a few cases of this eight-year-old rum are bottled so it is not always available.It's a full flavored rum that has been distilled and aged at a small distillery where quality is still the most important product.

Appleton VX is great for mixing but try the Extra for sipping. It's oustanding. Martiki mentioned the Cruzan Single Barrel - another great award-winning rum for sipping.

Some that are high on my list to try are Ron Zacapa Centenario and R.L. Seales Old Brigand black label. Anyone tried these?

Bacardi Coco and Tiki Punch with a lime is nice :D

Since I can't have alcohol, I couldn't live without Nature's Flavors Rum Syrup! I even pestered the company's owner enough to have them begin removing the brown color from the rum and make it a simple clear syrup. No more ugly, muddy (but incredibly delicious) Tiki mocktails!

New favorite: El Dorado Demerara (4 or 12 year)

On 2003-08-08 14:35, thejab wrote:
Appleton VX is great for mixing but try the Extra for sipping. It's oustanding. Martiki mentioned the Cruzan Single Barrel - another great award-winning rum for sipping.

I just bought it (Cruzan Single Barrel) and tried it. Another great TC suggestion and another great addition to Unga's rum library.

Unga Bunga wrote:
Another great TC suggestion and another great addition to Unga's rum library.

Yeah, I agree with TheJab's recommendations. He's like my own Roger Ebert of liquor...except TheJab is taller, weighs less and has better (and more) hair than Roger.

BK: How does the El Dorado Demerara compare to Lemon Hart Demerara? Stronger? Milder? Price difference?

A lot more vivid, at least the 12 year stuff. It's so good that when you open a bottle you can smell the spicy, fruity aroma across a room. I wouldn't press the issue on the 4-year.

Back in January I found that Binny's here in suburban Chicago carrys Sailor Jerry Spiced Navy Rum (92proof). I use it in a variety of different cocktails we serve when entertaining guests. I recently purchased a bottle of Marti Autentico Mojito but haven't tried it yet. It has a recipe card attached for a drink called Jealous Bitch, which I can't wait to try.
4 parts Marti Autentico
1 part melon liqueur
2 parts pineapple juice
2 parts orange juice
Shake with ice.
Serve in a cocktail glass (will substitute tiki mug).
Will review later!

old reserve -1983- Plantation Rum from Jamacia on the rocks with a twist of lime.....oh baby

I've always felt a good beginner's Rum (or Rum for Dummies, as it were) is Redrum... Goes down easy, makes nearly anything tropical when mixed, and it's got that oh-so-cool name to it...

It's great with Cherry 7-Up...

Speaking of good rums... thought you folks would get a kick out of these vacation pix I took in the British Virgin Islands two years ago. This is the Callwood Distillery on Tortola. It is the oldest continuously operating pot distillery in the Caribbean. (over 200 years). It smells wonderful. But I can't stress enough how much this place looked completely deserted when we go there. They make a plain white rum, a decent spiced rum, but an excellent oak cask aged rum. Don't be put off by the pictures of the casks- their rum was taken to a lab at UC Davis some time ago and found to be more pure than Mount Gay. Check it out:

This is the front. Inviting, no?

Interior and some of the casks. It's REAL small.

Out back.

This is the marble basin out back where they press the fresh cane juice. You can see the cane husks to the left.

Great sign inside.

Mahalo!

Martiki~

Great pictures!

Which rum does the distillery go by on their labels?

Is it available here in California?

Love that sign!

So, some rum was "tested" at a lab at UC Davis? I can hear them saying: "Hey, I know, let's check it's purity! First a Mai Tai, then a Scorpion, then a South Seas Zombie, then...." Yup, sounds like pure fun to me!

The aged rum is called Arundel Rum, and sadly it's not available in California. I'm pretty sure it's not in the US either. Very small production. The only place you can find a bottle is in the Foggy Grotto, where limited tastings of my last (sob) bottle are available to TC members.

You can also read about it in Edward Hamilton's rum guide.

Well - on the little trip I took with my Amber Love Goddess this afternoon I found a bar in Reddington Bch. ( just south of the Tiki Garden's Parking Lot) called Conch Republic. I scoffed at what was sure to be a Buffett Buffet and yet... there was a 14 bottle collection of premier rums for me to sample.

I thought I'd log in with my opinion of a few that were mentioned here earlier:

Ron Zacapa Ann. : Like molasses, butter and vanilla... mixed great with lime and pineapple (my tasting mix). Loved the wicker bottle and this definitely won the day.

Flor De Cana 7 year Gran Reserva: Mild and delicious... lost nothing with the "mix" and was a bit sweeter and more drinkable than the Zacapa.

Uhhhh... Barbados... uhhhhh, oh yeah - Ron Barcelo: Closer to a "dark" rum than the others. I was already a bit buzzed when it showed up but noticed a bitter element that wasn't bad - just different. Seems it would be a good mixer for a good sour drink. So I created one there. They had a large cache of fresh limes.

I couldn't believe there was a place like that in all of this Bay Area and I felt for one brief moment that I lived in a real city.

They had a Cohiba White there I'm trying next week - if I can get over there again.

No mention of the Aussie Rums ?
Bundaberg, comes in a variety of flavours and strengths I prefer the Black label for its flavour the OP is hell strong in flavour and personal mental damage.
The other one they do is Benleigh more of a brown sugar taste to it, smooth and easy to drink.
In the UK years ago I was drinking a nice African rum (cheap too) can't recall the name but it was good.

Coming from the land of State run liquor stores (Pennsylvania) Where selection, price, conveinence and service mean absolutely nothing.

I found something called Cadenhead 24 yr old Demerera it'll only cost me $112.19

I found the website

Anyone ever try or hear of this Scottish rum?

Well, I returned to Conch Republic on whatever that last holiday was... Monday.

I tried - for FREE - another 6 of those "top shelvers" there. I love accommodation.

Cohiba White blows. Sour and nasty like moonshine. I mean if you're going to get buzzed at least it should taste good, no?

Old Havana was pretty good - very sweet and if you like that sort of thing it's a pretty good deal. Mixes well.

The Ron Zacapa Centenario won the day again.

I tried some Venezuelan Rum that I forgot the name of - comes in a green, shorter bottle with a picture of some distinguished-looking gentleman on it.
It was OK, but not spectacular or (obviously) memorable.

I'm taking the guy a bottle of Cruzan Single Barrel and a bottle of orgeat and teaching his girls how to make a Mai Tai.

I envy you Californians. Even our "big time" liquor stores here have a 12 bottle selection before you move into the Budweiser displays. When I get back out to Oakland like I do at least once a year - I'm going to punish you all... well, not you... but definitely your rum collections.

[ Edited by: pablus on 2003-09-04 20:41 ]

[ Edited by: pablus on 2003-09-04 20:43 ]

On 2002-09-27 14:04, SoBeTiki wrote:
Pyrat XO is definitely my favorite sipping Rum. Anguilla (where the Rum is made) is also my favorite Caribbean island. Get your hands on the Jamaican beverage called Ting (grapefuit soda) and mix with Pyrat "Pistol" over ice. Yum!!!

TING!!! Damn I haven't thought about that stuff since my NYC days. The Jamaican record shop next door had me hooked on that stuff! My supply dried up when NYC'S finest raided the shop, seems not many people were buying either records or Ting, but small baggies of potent herbal medicine.
And it was potent...
TG

Well, if I could select only one, I gotta go with Myer's Dark!

My other favorites are Appleton, Rhum St. James, and Gosling's Black Seal.

But from the quotes in this thread, next trip to the store I'll have to pick up some of that Barbancourt 5-star.

Thought I'd mention.. recently I tried some of that Marti Mojito... a "cuban style" white rum mixed with mint and lime (and some sugar syrup, I think). I mix that with an equal amount of club soda and squeeze and throw in half a key lime and it's a really refreshing (quick) mojito for a hot afternoon in S. Florida (without having to grow the mint).

By the way.. I'll be out in Anaheim on the 20th for the 40th Tiki Room event.... anyone know of a store in the LA area that sells Lemon Hart Demerara 151-proof?

Thanks!

In Sweden the state have monopoly on selling alcohol in stores but the rum assortment isn't that bad actually. Some of my favorites available here are:

Havana Club Añejo Blanco (Cuba)
Appleton Dark (Jamaica)
El Dorado Demerara (Guyana)
Havana Club Añejo Reserva (Cuba)
Mount Gay (Barbados)
Saint James Rhum Vieux Agricole (Martinique)

And yes, there are also several different Bacardis available here but I tend to prefer Havana Club :wink:

Thanks to Mike at Delilah's in Chicago I tried a few new (to me) rums lately. I finally got to try the Ron Zacapo - it was my favorite at the rum tasting. Another I tried at Delilah's was the Ron Anejo Anniversario from Venezuela, that JT and weirdunc mentioned erlier in this thread. Mmmmm, it's definitely my current favorite.

I went to Sam's Liquors in Chicago on Mike's tip. Wow, they have an incredible selection of rums, whiskies, and more. I bought a bottle of the Ron Anejo Anniversario, El Dorado 12-yr Demarara, Pisco Capel in the Moai decanter, Coruba Dark (great substitute for Myers's - if the Tiki Ti uses it it has to be good), and a bottle of Old Van Winkle 10-yr Bourbon. I was so excited I forgot to look at the syrups for Falernum! They don't have any of the above rums in my local stores - even the Coruba is hard to find here lately. I highly recommend Sam's if you're in Chicago.

Aloha!
Thought I'd revive an old thread, lots of good info here.

Has anyone else ever seen/tried this rum?

I saw it while visiting Gaithersburg, MD and almost bought it because the label was so cool. I passed on it since my limit was 4 bottles, and it didn't look like the quality was there.

I've just been bought a bottle of El Dorado Special Reserve 15 Year Old Rum, and it is by far the best rum I've tried. Fantastic complex mixture of flavours and smells. Recommended.
Tried it with Havana Club Anejo 7yr old last night in a Mai Tai. Best damm Mai Tai I've had!

(For those in the UK, the El Dorado is available in Waitrose)

I had a taste of that myself in Waitrose, who were having a tasting session. It's very nice indeed - a real sipping rum.

Here's our future King getting stuck into a large glass of the stuff:

Trader Woody

On 2004-04-21 02:20, Trader Woody wrote:
I had a taste of that myself in Waitrose, who were having a tasting session. It's very nice indeed - a real sipping rum.

Trader Woody

I've been sipping it AND putting it in every drink I could find. Life's too short to use lesser quality spirits. Every Mai Tai could be my last!

On 2002-09-27 05:34, Trader Woody wrote:

woofmutt wrote:
Cockspur is an excellent golden rum with a mellow flavor that's good enough to drink straight.

Ah Cockspur, my introduction to the wonders of rum. Years ago a group of us
went to Barbados from our Geography dept at university, and it wasn't long before
we ventured out from the research institute where we were staying. A rum shack
was set up across the road, and we wandered over, rather unsure if this was wise
or not, and started talking to the locals. Their Bajan accent was incedibly thick, and
took some getting used to. One of my friends misheard the man his was talking to,
and thought he'd just been warned that it 'was a trap'. Paranoia took over as word got
round that we might be in some danger, and my immediate reaction was to get a drink.
I bought a small bottle of Cockspur, and had difficulty in opening it. I looked up to see
one of the guys from behind the counter coming out with a machete in his hand.
My immediate thought was that those were my final moments, until he grabbed the bottle
from my hand and proceeded to expertly open it with the machete!

The Cockspur went down incredibly well after all that, and it wasn't long before
were getting along with the locals like old pals. Great stuff, that Cockspur.

Trader Woody

Cockspur and Mount Gay. Cool little 12 oz. bottles sold in 6 packs at the grocery store in Barbados. Not good if you're hammered from drinking Rum Punch all day on the Jolly Roger out of Bridgetown and when you get back from cruzing the cool waters and walking the plank, snorkeling, drinking more rum punch, eating flying fish, and get back into the taxi and think it's a beer bottle and chug it!! Good if you want to pass it around with friends like the local beach rastas (Dr. D you out there?? I have no more atennas to wisdom!) who know what is up. Barbados is a cool place. Go!

I'm susceptible to advertising, so my favorite is Pyrat XO. (The ahem package stores here and in neighboring states, realizing that most folks aren't used to hooch that doesn't come in mason jars sealed with waxed burlap and rubber bands, posts reviews of boozes on the shelves.)

In Barcelona recently, I tried Medellin from Columbia. Recently busted for disolving pounds and pounds of cocaine into for smuggling, luckily the shot I had did not contain a lethal dose. It was darn tasty though

I work with a guy from the Bahamas and he told me about a local rum called Nassau Royal. His initials are LS. LS has a heavy Bahamaian accent,especially when he gets excited like when he talks about the local rum. When we finally visited the islands of the Bahamas everyone spoke just like LS, so I felt like I had been there before. Anyway I bought two bottles of Nassau Royal, one Pinepple flavored and one Rum Liqueur. On the flight back to Orlando I began to sense the wonderful aroma of Pineapple Rum in the cabin of the plane. Later I realized that it was my bottle of rum that had broken, probably from the careless handling of my luggage by some Neanderthal baggage attendant in Fort Lauderdale. That's why Nassau Royal is my favorite; thanks for the memories!
Tikiboy

Rhum Barboncourt is the best gold rum I've ever tried.

On 2004-04-27 10:26, Blue Moose wrote:
Rhum Barboncourt is the best gold rum I've ever tried.

Which one did you like best? There are at least 3 different ones (3-star, 5-star, and Special Reserve).

st-james martinique gold rum and myers planters dark rum are the best. Mix these together with any recipe calling for dark and gold and it will have u walking the plank.by the way i am looking for the original navy grog mix recipe would u know anything about it?

Naussau Royale is definitely the shiznit. It has a sweet, vanilla like flavor. I have only had it on the rocks, I don't know about mixed drinks with it though. I recently went to Jamaica in feb for my honeymoon and brought back several bottles of Appleton Estates for only 8$ a pop! That's also very good. Mt Gay is also extemely good for mixing or sipping.

i googled rum and got this online place

http://www.rumshop.net/

haven't tried it, just passing it on for general knowledge.

I don't know if it was mentioned before here, but I am currently enjoying WOOD'S OLD NAVY RUM, distilled from finest Demerara cane harvested from the banks of the Demerara River, distilled at the Diamond Distillery, Guyana.
Heart of darkness, t'is a man's drink, Matey! If this is just export strength, I fear what the local strength must be like!

Never seen it in the US, I always get it when stopping over at Heathrow airport (London), at the duty free.

On 2004-04-28 08:08, trader dan wrote:
st-james martinique gold rum and myers planters dark rum are the best.

The best st James brand is the "imperial white", simply the best for cocktails

On 2004-04-29 13:47, virani wrote:
The best st James brand is the "imperial white", simply the best for cocktails

I have only seen regular gold and Hors d' Age in the United States, but I find it fascinating to learn what rums are available in various countries. If nothing, it gives us an idea of the variety being produced. Keep the suggestions coming.

Cruzan has recently started selling a dark rum in the states called Cruzan Black Strap Rum. It's a heavy molasses rum in the vein of a Whalers or Myers's, but it's excellent for certain drinks, and reasonable priced as well. Look for it.

I just bought a bottle of Coyopa Rum
as mentioned by Pablus in this post,for the reason being (a “hot tip" from my distributor friend)that this will be a very hot collectors item when they stop making them. It's not official yet, but they are not selling well because of the price (average $50) so they are going to a normal bottle.
The trick is not to open it or wear out the battery. The rum gets above average ratings (I have not tried it). They even commissioned a writer for original music.
Here is a description of the label:

Features a patented "Active Label" that is animated by a backlight, which is activated each time the bottle is lifted, illuminating picture of dancers in sequence and making it appear as if the dancers are moving to it’s original music. Packaged in 750-ml glass bottles, the first 100,000 bottles are hand-numbered and signed by the company chairman.

I used to play blackjack for shots of bacardi 151 back when I had a roommate, but am now favoring Rhum Barbancourt for most mixed drinks (of a single rum) or straight. I like Captain Morgan's for Bungos, or other grogs. Mount Gay is not bad. Havana Club is only slightly better than Bacardi ( a little smoother, and a little sweeter).
I recently tried and was very impressed by Rhum saint james, it's my 2nd fav (after Barbancourt). I am looking forward to trying lemon hart and stroh.

[ Edited by: the wayward one on 2004-07-09 22:07 ]

As of right now with the stock I have, I say Cruzan single barrel rum and cockspur. Well and of course Lemon Hart Demerara rum I have both 86 and 151, I tried the 86 proof straight and it is really good.

On 2004-04-29 15:22, Unga Bunga wrote:
It's not official yet, but they are not selling well because of the price (average $50) so they are going to a normal bottle.
The trick is not to open it or wear out the battery. The rum gets above average ratings (I have not tried it). They even commissioned a writer for original music.
Here is a description of the label:

Features a patented "Active Label" that is animated by a backlight, which is activated each time the bottle is lifted, illuminating picture of dancers in sequence and making it appear as if the dancers are moving to it’s original music. Packaged in 750-ml glass bottles, the first 100,000 bottles are hand-numbered and signed by the company chairman.

It's so much fun, though. I don't know if I could stop playing with the bottle. When they debuted Coyopa here in SC in that bottle, I accidentally moved it aside and discovered the music. I kept picking it up and putting it back giggling like a school girl the whole time. One of the stockers was just laughing hysterically with me. I think they were too amused to ask me to purchase it or leave.

On 2004-04-30 00:57, crataegus wrote:

On 2004-04-29 15:22, Unga Bunga wrote:
It's not official yet, but they are not selling well because of the price (average $50) so they are going to a normal bottle.
The trick is not to open it or wear out the battery. The rum gets above average ratings (I have not tried it). They even commissioned a writer for original music.
Here is a description of the label:

Features a patented "Active Label" that is animated by a backlight, which is activated each time the bottle is lifted, illuminating picture of dancers in sequence and making it appear as if the dancers are moving to it’s original music. Packaged in 750-ml glass bottles, the first 100,000 bottles are hand-numbered and signed by the company chairman.

It's so much fun, though. I don't know if I could stop playing with the bottle. When they debuted Coyopa here in SC in that bottle, I accidentally moved it aside and discovered the music. I kept picking it up and putting it back giggling like a school girl the whole time. One of the stockers was just laughing hysterically with me. I think they were too amused to ask me to purchase it or leave.

i found a bottle of it this weekend, but did not purchase it. it was pretty cool. it didn't have a price but the fella said it was 40-something dollars. i'm pretty sure the technology to light up the label is the same as came out about 5 years ago for aftermarket auto customizing - these phosphorescent strips that are flexible and light up with a 9 volt battery. you coculd conceivably make your car look like it came out of TRON.

but TRON wouldn't be drinking such fine rum, of course...