Mamajuana is a Dominican blend of rum, wine, herbs, honey, and other fun stuff. It’s sort of a ready to drink cocktail. While not really a rum, it was in the rum section of the liquor store when I was in Little Dominican Republic, so I figured it was worth a try. Also, Kalembú calls itself a “rum with natural flavors”, and Hispaniola calls itself a “specialty rum”, so to be fair, if it calls itself a rum, I will review it like a rum.

Note: I just thought it was interesting that their website also is super heavy on the health benefits of drinking Mamajuana. That just sounds super illegal if it were in the US.

Review

Smell

Very strong on cloves. It tastes kind of like an apple pie, but with extra cloves. Big on Cinnamon as well, and something medicinal smelling.

Taste

Tastes pretty much how it smells. Very sweet apple pie, heavy on cinnamon and cloves. There’s also something that tastes like lavendar. I will say that, despite being only 30% and being full of sugar, you really feel it. I think the rum is just super cheap and young.

And, of course, what spiced rum/spirit drink tasting is complete without a rum and cola? I did 1:1 for the mamajuanas and 2:1 for kraken to compensate for the higher ABV. I like the Kalembú and coke. It’s like an apple pie cola with some sweetness, cinnamon, and cloves. Goes down very smooth and the flavors go together well. And kraken just tastes like… kraken. Even when all 3 were watered down to around 15% ABV with cola, kraken still has the most noticable burn of alcohol, and there’s nothing to the flavor other than vanilla and a hint of spices. It’s not nearly as complex and interesting as the two mamajuanas.

Verdict 5.5/10

When it comes to spiced rum, these are not half bad. Of course, I took a quick swig of Foursquare spiced rum, and it was a significant step up from these, and I go back to them, and the rum burns more, and they’re veeery sweet. But then I try it against Kraken, and now Kraken is the one that’s disappointing. Harsh, bitter, and the predominant flavor is vanilla extract. Overall, as far as spiced rums go, I like them. They’re not bad on their own, and Kalembu is slightly better. It is better in a cola, and just in general, I prefer the spice mix that’s in it. 5.5/10.