And the list:
Bacardi:
A good basic clean white rum. Drinkable straight, or a good mixer.
Neutral and unexceptional. Apart from
the advertising, pretty much like most other cheap white rums.
T *** J ** G ***
Bacardi Gold:
700 ml bottle
Matured in charred barrels, giving a smooth taste and a light gold colour (probably with a bit of help with some
extra colouring). A 75 proof rum from the Bahamas. I felt this was quite different in flavour (and inferior) to
Bacardi white, Jocelyn felt it was almost the same. A mixing rum; nothing to drink bottles of straight.
T ** J ** S **
G **
Bardinet Rhum Negrita:
700 ml bottle
Smooth, light flavour for a dark rum. Nicely aged, giving a very
mellow product. Perfect for drinking on hot afternoons.
T *** G *
Beenleigh Rum:
Like Bundy Rum, but worse. 37.1% alcohol.
T * G * S **
Bundaberg Black:
700 ml bottle
box
The premium Bundy rum. A lot darker than the regular Bundy, and a lot better too. It has the same
characteristic Queensland rum flavour. Highly recommended for any fans of Queensland rum. It's good
rum, but if you prefer Caribbean rums, it's probably not worth the expense. (We tried the Vat 105 - 1987 release.)
80 proof.
T *** G ** S **
Bundaberg Rum:
700 ml bottle
The classic Queensland dark rum. Cheap and available, enormously popular around here. Strong and
distinctive flavour, rough and direct. Not good. The premium version, Bundy Black, is much
better (and much more expensive). Must try the OP version one day.
T ** G ** S ** Muzza *****
Bushman's Vodka:
Australian sugar cane vodka (and what's the difference between sugar cane vodka and dry white rum?) -
and not bad. Certainly better than any other Australian vodka I've ever tried. Tastes like a very dry white rum.
Not bad, decently drinkable. 40% alcohol.
T *** S *
Captain Morgan Black Label:
700 ml bottle
A cheap 74 proof dark Jamaican rum. Tastes like an inferior version of
Coruba. It's smooth, has good flavour, and there's really nothing
wrong with it.
T **
Captain Morgan Black Label OP:
From Jamaica, dark and slightly reddish, this weighs in at a strong 57.2% alcohol. It's quite drinkable
despite the bite. I didn't find it to be as sweet as the 74 proof version. It's okay, though hardly a great rum.
T **
Captain Morgan Dark Rum (Canadian):
Heavy molasses flavour, this version, blended from imported rums and local Canadian product is very much like
the straight Jamaican Captain Morgan. A quite adequate mixer, though
not the best to drink straight. 40% alcohol.
T **
Captain Morgan Gold Rum (Canadian):
Light gold colour, with a light rummy molasses aroma. Very mild in
flavour, this would be easy to swill down in Very Large Quantities.
This is a well-done easy-drinking product. Thanks, Cap.
Blended from imported rums and local Canadian product, 40% alcohol.
T ***
Captain Morgan White Rum (Canadian):
Light aroma, light flavour, and very sweet. This might be a good
vanishing mixer, but seems altogether too elusive to drink.
Blended from imported rums and local Canadian product, 40% alcohol.
T **
Captain Q:
An ``extra-matured'' golden rum. Has a nice flavour, fairly mild. Smooth and easy drinking.
Found this in Korea, don't know the country of origin.
T ***
Coruba:
A very dark, very sweet Jamaican rum. Very popular
in New Zealand. From Glen - Sweet? What's Timo on. This
stuff is piss! I think he's been on the Polmos Pure Spirit
again.
T *** G **
Dalvin Domaci Rum:
From Croatia, with a suitably nautical label, this is a medium red-brown in colour. A most intriguing and
light aroma - makes me suspect that this is not a straight rum, but is flavoured with something - can't tell
what with, though. Light in flavour, and quite pleasant. Mysterious, but nice - a good after dinner drop. 40% alcohol.
T ***
Hansen Präsident:
50 ml bottle
This seems to be a German Jamaican rum brand. Somewhat reminiscent of the Mount Gay Extra Old, though not
quite as smooth. 84 proof, mellow, with a good flavour, this one is nice.
T **** G *
Havana Club Añejo 7 Años:
Like a solid heavy-duty Jamaican rum (Havana Club is the classic
Cuban brand), and very nice. Smooth, though not so slick it goes
down without being noticed. One of the best heavy-on-the-molasses
dark rums out there.
T ****
Havana Club Silver Dry:
750 ml bottle
"El Ron de Cuba." A fairly light and delicate white rum. One of the great white rums of the world -
definately a good solid flawless product. The Cubans know what they're doing when
it comes to making rum.
T ****
J *****
Lamb's Navy Rum:
Dark and flavourful, as one might expect, very Navy. A little
lightweight perhaps, but this is the 40% version.
From Montréal.
T ***
Lemon Hart & Son Demerara Rum:
A blend of rums from Guyana and Canada, it's a smooth easy-drinking
lightish dark rum. Unspectacular, nice, and goes down very easily. 40% alcohol.
T ***
Mainstay:
White rum from Mauritius. Not bad, but there's better
out there.
T ** G *
Malibu:
A Caribbean white rum and coconut liqueur, it usually lurks inside an opaque white bottle. Inside is a
clear somewhat viscous drink smelling strongly of coconut. Pleasant to taste and nicely sweet, this went
down very easily. If you're into coconut, try it (also try other coconut liqueurs, too, you might like them more, since
there are better ones out there). 24% alcohol.
T *** S ***
J **
Mount Gay Extra Old Barbados Rum:
750 ml bottle
Claims to be the world's finest rum since 1703, this ultra-smooth
and mellow drop is fine. This 80 proof nectar of the gods
is a bit light in taste, but must be one of the most drinkable
dark rums in existence. Don't leave it in the glass for too long before
you drink it, as the flavour is quite volatile.
T **** G **
Mount Gay Refined Eclipse Barbados Rum:
Mount Gay Eclipse is a rather laid-back golden rum. Smooth, easy-drinking,
and tasty enough, though the flavour didn't really do it for me. 37.5%
T ***
Newfoundland Screech:
The famous Newfoundland rum - there's a
story behind
it, too. Actually, it's imported from Jamaica, and bottled
(and blended?) in Newfoundland. Not as heavy in flavour as some
other Jamaican rums, but still solid. A little rough, but perhaps
that's the whole idea, and anyway, it's still easy enough to drink.
Cute, otherwise unexceptional, but it grows on you. 40% alcohol.
T ***
Pusser's:
750 ml bottle
Expertly blended from the world's finest Caribbean rums, a very
tasty 95.5 proof dark rum. A true sailor's delight, I hear
it's close to traditional Royal Navy rum. Tasty, but a tad harsh.
T *** G *
Ron Carioca White Rum/Rhum Blanc:
Canadian rum, by UDV, smooth and easy drinking (as advertised, even).
Mild, but still manages to be sufficiently flavoursome (perhaps
that's the `distinctive ``Taste of the Islands'' ' it's
supposed to have) to be at the better end of MOTR. 40% alcohol.
T ***
Stroh 60:
Frightening industrial nose, this is a strong (60%) orange-brown
Austrian rum. Tastes better than it smells, it goes down very easily
despite the high proof, sliding down like a slick oyster, with the
residue evaporating from the tongue. Sweet, balanced, smells bad.
T **
Stubbs:
Dry white rum, from Queensland, Australia. Tasty, and smooth, with a fairly robust flavour, with faint
fruity hint to it. Definitely nice.
T ****
Tanduay Rhum Dark:
I've seen this touted as the world's biggest selling rum brand, and why not, seeing as it combines a
decent price and excellent quality. Very smooth, and a very nice flavour. Perhaps it could be better, but there
is really very little wrong with it. A medium reddish-brown in colour, this weighs in at 80 proof, distilled
in the Philippines.
T ****
