Rum is a drink that has been popular all through history. It plays a major part in the cultures of West Indies, Maritimes and Newfoundland. It is famous for its associations with the Royal Navy and Piracy. It was also a medium of popular exchange to fund enterprises like slavery, organized crime and military insurgencies. There’s even a rebellion for it – the Australian Rum Rebellion. Jamaican rums are some of the most famous varieties with its interesting smooth punches, with its ‘rudeness’ (Rude Rum is a popular version of rum in Jamaica).
The famous bartender from Jamaica Inn, Rajay McLean, curates the list of the 8 best Jamaican rums of all times that are a must try. I bumped into this list here, so thought of sharing it over –
Appleton Special
Appleton Special is the bartender’s best friend. It has elements that allow it to work with just about any chaser, it is smooth and easy to work with. It is known and respected all over the world. The best thing to do with it is enjoy it with Ginger Beer.
El Dorado Rum 21-Year
El Dorado is made in Guyana’s Demerara country and its popular around the world for its rich 300-year history. As one of the rums distilled in wooden stills rather than copper stills, the flavors from the oak wood make it stand out from the rest. It would be best savored slowly, on its own, it would be a decadent way to end the evening.
Zacapa Rum
Zacapa is produced in the Guatemalan countryside. And it’s different from most rums, which are made with molasses: It uses the first pressing of sugar cane juice (referred to as virgin sugar cane honey) and is aged in ex-whiskey, ex-sherry, and ex-port barrels. In the case of Zacapa XO, the final stage of aging occurs in French oak cognac barrels. It’s soft and sweet with a medium body, finishing with notes of nutmeg. All this makes Zacapa unique from the others and it’s the type of rum that will make you fall in love.
Myer’s Rum
Myers’s Rum was also called the ‘planter’s punch rum’ back in the earlier days. It was one of the first rums produced in Jamaica. It’s been around since 1879. It’s said that during the sugarcane plantation days, the workers would use the ingredients they had left available to them and came up with Myers’s for their own consumption. The dark rum is frequently used in mixed drinks. It’s also a common cooking ingredient in a variety of both sweet and savory recipes.
Smatt’s Silver Rum
Packed in a very elegant bottle, this Jamaican rum has amazing flavors of banana, caramel, coconut and vanilla, with a very smooth and pure finish to it. Mix it into cocktails or have it as such, either ways, this is a amazing flavor punch.
Wray & Nephew
This is the best selling high-proof rum, especially in Jamaica. It is versatile and excellent for cocktails, great for a rum punch or with grapefruit juice. Moreover, it is also used as rubbing alcohol.
Blackwell Rum
It is an authentic and complex Jamaican rum. It is the base of great tasting cocktails like Golden Eye and Black storm. Blackwell Rum is often said to be the essence of Jamaica. The maker’s grandfather once owned Wray & Nephew too.
Rum-Bar Rum
It is made from 100% pot-still distilled rum. Unlike other rums, it’s smoother and less harsh with little or no aftertaste or smell. The rum has no additives—deionized water is used to reach an alcohol strength equivalent to 130-proof (U.S.) It’s a great mixing rum used for a number of cocktails—like a rum collins or a rum sour.
