Rum
Rum is underrated. When people want to impress, they grab whisky. Rum becomes cola mixing at parties, or duty free buys hidden in plastic bags. It’s disappointing, because those cheap bottles aren’t what this spirit is all about. The best bottles in this collection have depth, age and tales that reach back generations across the Caribbean, Central America and further. The right bottle of rum is one of the most rewarding presents you can buy for a drinker.
We’ve curated this collection because we kept coming across bottles like that; fantastic rum being overlooked by drinkers that would have loved it if they’d been given half a chance. So we’re giving that chance. Each bottle in this collection has been chosen because it’s exciting, interesting or simply punches well above it weight. We haven’t included anything because it has a cool label, or a trendy backstory.
As well as being fantastic drinks on their own merits, what makes rum such a great gift is how varied the good stuff can be. If you want aged whisky style depth, there are bottles here that match whiskies on the priciest of shelves. If you’re after something different, there are agicoles so funky they’ll give the rest of your cabinet a serious run for their money. If you like supporting smaller producers who are doing their own thing, there are loads of bottles here that were made in tiny batches by people pouring their soul into every bottle.
We’ve tried to cover all that without including stuff we don’t actually think is very good, because nobody wants that. Buying tips? If you know your recipient is a serious rum drinker, head straight for older aged juice and single casks. If they think that they don’t like rum, go for something crisp and smoothly made to demonstrate how versatile and delicious it can be. And if you like rum and you want some more rum, you’re covered too. Stumbled across something you think we missed? Please let us know!
On drinks bought for others, the only other note we have is: drink booze, have fun, don’t worry about it. If you’re buying something for yourself we have absolutely no notes. Well, one: we only recommend stuff we’d want to buy ourselves. We didn’t decide to do that and force us to drink stuff we didn’t enjoy. We don’t know how to curate otherwise. Enjoy your rum.