I always mention how, at room parties, I take what I can get, and what I can get is usually cheap generic rum. Well, one of my friends surprised me in Pittsburgh, when he had several bottles of Planteray in his kitchen.

All I know about rum comes from my participation in this sub over the past 2 months or so, and so all I know about Planteray is that it’s controversial due to their practices of adding sugar to rum. However, I also know that they stay within the 20g/L limit that some countries enforce by law, and I also know that a lot of other rums have also been dosing with sugar up to or even beyond the legal limit, and they just don’t disclose it the way that Planteray does. I understand the controversy, and I will also disclose that I suspect that it may have an effect on my rating, as I enjoy a sweeter product. It enhances the fruity characteristics, and I have found over the course of my reviews that I favor a sweeter, younger, fruitier rum over a dryer, older, more oaked rum, despite the latter being more expensive and generally considered a smoother, better “sipping” rum.

That being said, no one said that reviews are completely unbiased.

Review

Smell

It has a smell of vanilla and caramel, with a mild jamaican funk.

Taste

On the front, it has a hot bite, followed by the sweet and fruity taste of pineapple and overripe bananas that is unmistakably Jamaican, but it kind of has a short finish, ending with a bitter note. It’s mildly funky, maybe a bit of a caramelly aged note— I don’t hate it, but it’s nothing to write home about. It somewhat reminds me of Appleton 8, as that one is also mildly funky and has aged notes, but is brought down by the hotness of the alcohol (though Appleton 8 didn’t have a bit of bitterness to it).

Mixed with coke- the fruity Jamaican goodness is noticable. It’s nice, but I would definitely pick the 5 year Barbados that I just had over this one.

Verdict 5/10

(Edited from 6/10 on 1/2/26)

Overall I’d give it a 6. The flavor is there, and it has something to it, but it’s pretty mild. I was surprised when looking it up that they got such a cheap product with 10-15 year pot still rum, but I guess it makes up a pretty small percent of the final product because it’s really watered down with rather boring column still Barbados rum. The 5 year Barbados version has so much more flavor despite not even having any Jamaican pot still mixed in! In the end, the bitterness on the finish, and strong hit of hot alcohol, and overall mildness of the good flavors mean that Appleton Estate Signature (which is just a few dollars more) is a significant upgrade.

January 2, 2026 Update:

I just had this at a New Year’s party… holy crap it’s so sour. Why is it so sour??

Like, yes, it is fruity and has a bit of jamaican in there. I don’t even care that it’s a bit hot. That’s normal. This rum would taste actually pretty good, like a 3 stars with more body, if it wasn’t so sour. This was a brand new bottle. The guy opened it just for me and gave me the first pour. It wasn’t sitting out for a while or anything. But why is it so annoyingly sour? Literally that brings it down from a 6 or 6.5 to a 5. I’d prefer it to Bacardi white in my cup, but not by that much.