This past weekend I attended the NY Rum Fest for the first time, and it was a fantastic experience. Imagine a conference room lined with about 30 tables, each representing a different company, and some offering upwards of 20 different bottles for tasting. Obviously, I could not try everything; even pacing myself and only taking small sips, I feel like I made it through less than a third of the bottles on offer. I will definitely be coming back next year. Cane juice aguardiente I took plenty of notes, but I wanted to start by spotlighting one company in particular: Nicoya. Their table stood out because Pierre Bardinet pulled a Hampden Estate and actually brought Nicoya's individual unaged marques for us to taste. Nicoya currently produces three marques: aguardientes of cane juice, cane syrup (aka cane honey), and molasses. Instead of using the much more common continuous multi-column setup, each ferment is batch-distilled in copper pot stills and then re-distilled in a copper column. These components are ultimately blended to create both their Blanco and Añejo expressions. Pierre let me try all three marques. I won't rate them since they're not for individual sale, but I wanted to share my feelings about them. Cane juice: Immediately reminiscent of Haitian cane spirits like Clairin Sajous. Vegetal, peppery, fruity, and sharp. Cane syrup: This one was more complex. There was still some vegetal notes, but now it was more deep, robust, and smoky, like Clairin Le Rocher, or Caña Criolla from The Rums of Mexico, with an aftertaste of buttered popcorn. Cane molasses: Interestingly, on the nose and initial palate, this one was the most subdued. Just typical notes of column still rum, but it had a deep umami note to it that I couldn't quite put my finger on. After trying each individually, I asked to have all three mixed together. The result was like an orchestra, where the cane juice was the top note, cane syrup was the melody, and molasses was the bass. Then I asked for more molasses because you always need more bass. It was actually incredible, and had it not been near the end of rum fest with a few more tables to visit, I would have stayed and played around with the blending some more. It was so fun! What other producer lets you taste cane juice, cane syrup, and molasses rums all produced from the same place in the exact same way, side-by-side? Review For context, this is happening at a rum fest and rum is being poured and carried around all around me, so subtle aromatic notes can easily be lost. Smell Way lighter than the aguardiente blend that I just nosed. Compared to that, it doesn't really have much going on. Taste I did swirl water around in my mouth between trying the three marks and these samples, but still, it's not exactly a fresh start. Even so, this rum definitely came off as noticably more dialed back compared to the marks. It was not completely bland, but more along the lines of Hamilton Breezeway Blend, which is the closest rum in taste, in my opinion. It seems like Nicoya Blanco might make a great daiquiri candidate, but unfortunately, I had no means of trying that at the time. Verdict {rating}/10 This review partly exists because I wanted to share my experience at Nicoya's table, and also there are basically no reviews for this rum. I think that neither bottling is fantastic, but at $20, they are competitive with Appleton Signature for value, which I consider to be a benchmark of budget rum. I gave Appleton Signature a 6.5/10 as well, and I am happy to sip it, so I may have to keep an eye out for Nicoya.

Matt Pietrek traveled the world, visited so many distilleries, and wrote a medical textbook-sized book on them. Luca Gargano traveled the world and gave us Caroni. I just went to my local distillery here in Brooklyn. Have you seen airline ticket prices these days? You can read more about the distillery in my article on Standard Wormwood(../../distilleries/standard-wormwood) The base fermentable is unclear, but USVI + Jamaica means almost certainly 100% molasses. But I can't know for sure. Review Smell Very fruity. My initial thought upon smelling it is that this is something from Worthy Park or Hampden because it gives me a nice pineapple note and it's not as industrial as some funks can be at times. Taste Surprisingly light. The nose was a lot heavier with Jamaican funk than the taste, but I actually prefer it not too overwhelming. It's probably in the neighborhood of OWH or Smith & Cross. But then the wormwood kicks in and it finishes with a light touch of Malört. As someone who went to college in Chicago, I am very familiar with Malört, and I can't say that I enjoy it, but I have grown a tolerance to it. As such, this finish is rather interesting. I can't say that I necessarily like it, but I don't hate it, and it's actually quite curious. In a daiquiri, it's pretty much fantastic. You really don't feel the Malört at all, and you just get a light, crisp, unaged Jamaican rum in your daiquiri, which is probably my favorite genre of daiquiri. Verdict {rating}/10 I would not call this a sipper necessarily, though I could sip it just fine, but it's just really nice as a mixer. I'd compare it to Spike's Breezeway Blend or Planteray 3 Stars, where it's light, crisp, funky but not overly so, and makes nice mixed drinks. Though, for the price, I can't really say it's a good value, when you can buy a 1L bottle of Planteray 3 Stars and 1L Spike's Breezeway Blend combined for the same price as a 750mL of this rum. But I get it, its art-is-anal small batch rum distilled in NYC. The bartenders were really friendly and knowledgable and I do recommend Industry City for the vibes, and you might as well stop by for a good rum cocktail. 7/10

I have done a lot of reviews of Dominican rums, but you know what is always conspicuously missing? Bermudez. They're one of the "Three B's" of Dominican rum, but to be honest, they kind of fell off as of late. Many other brands seem to have just as much if not more presence than Bermudez. I don't even think they still distill. So, I don't really want to get everything from them like I already did with Brugal and Barcelo, but I gotta at least try their flagship, named after their founder: Don Armando. Review Smell Honestly it smells very much like other Dominican rums. Light on the nose, with a bit of vanilla, oak, and again that indescribable slightly floral scent that I associate with Dominican rums. Taste It's extremely similar to Brugal. Just like the nose, the flavor is light, and has notes of vanilla, oak, and a slightly floral finish. It's a bit woody and tannic, distinctly Dominican, and I like it better than Havana Club 7 Year, since it's a bit less sour. I would say that it is most similar to Brugal 1888, as side by side, I can barely tell them apart, other than Don Armando being a bit sweeter. Verdict {rating}/10 Honestly, I tried some of the lower shelf stuff from Bermudez (I might get to that review eventually) and it did not impress me. So, when I saw this for $22, I thought, that is way too cheap to be good, especially at the airport in a tourist area, but this is literally their flagship, so I decided to bite the bullet and get it. The fact that it is among the best rums that I have tried in the DR is already not bad. Don't get me wrong, there's far better rums out there, but in terms of the DR, it doesn't get all that much better. But then on top of that, only being $22 without tax? Honestly, I would straight up recommend this rum if you see it. Gift it to someone who isn't all that into rum yet. It's half-decent, sweet but not offensively so, and cheap.

I have been holding off on El Dorado for a while, mostly because I wanted a big group photo of all the bottles together: 3, 5, 8, 12, 15, and 21, all together like a nice big family on the beautiful Coney Island beach. Well, you might have thought the 21 would be the hardest to acquire! But no, that is the first full bottle of ED that I acquired, because shortly into my rum journey, I took a trip to Canada and on the US-CAN border I stopped by duty free and got a whole liter of it for like $85, tax free; it was a crazy good deal. But that's not actually the first one I tried. Also early into my rum journey, I was actually given a sample of ED 15 by an employee of El Dorado for free. I don't know if I really have to do a disclosure, because it was early enough in my journey where my review isn't that good and I want to do a do-over. Oh, I also have a bottle of ED 12, but little did I know, it was actually one of the old bottles from before they severely cut back on the added sugar, so that might not be good to review since it has changed so much since then. So for now, I will start with the basics and worry about the rest later. Maybe there will be a family photo on the beach, maybe there won't be. > Note: I am seeing suggestions that it's a blend of Enmore Coffey and Port Mourant wooden pot still, but a blend of at least four stills, Skurnik claims it also includes SVW (Diamond Coffey still) and Savalle column still. Review Smell There's a very distinct smell of caramel and molasses. It's quite similar to Pusser's, but a bit less raisiny pruney and more burnt caramel. Taste Rich, caramel, molasses, and a slight bitterness and burn. Rich, earthy, and has a distinct raisiny earthy taste that I associate with Demerara rum. Somehow, Hamilton 86 kind of reminds me of Myers's in comparison, just a bit more rubbery and banana. Meanwhile, Pusser's tastes much more like caramel and charred barrel. Pusser's and ED8 both share a similar earthy, raisiny taste. In a daiquiri, it's pretty interesting. Sweet, almost smoky, earthy, and complex. Hamilton 86 tastes more like a traditional daiquiri, and again, I can't shake that flavor of Myers's, but I actually like it a bit more in a daiquiri than ED8. Pusser's makes the most caramelly and raisiny daiquiri which I think is really fun, and it's quite different, but I enjoy it about as much as the Hamilton 86. Verdict {rating}/10 El Dorado 8 is decent, for sure, and I find it pretty much just as good as Pusser's and Hamilton 86, and those are at the same price point. 6.5/10. Honestly all 3 are slightly different, I would just pick the one that works better for your cocktails, and don't forget that Pusser's has a Gunpowder Proof version (capitalized because it's actually a few degrees below proof strength) which is a slight improvement still.

I have been holding off on El Dorado for a while, mostly because I wanted a big group photo of all the bottles together: 3, 5, 8, 12, 15, and 21, all together like a nice big family on the beautiful Coney Island beach. Well, you might have thought the 21 would be the hardest to acquire! But no, that is the first full bottle of ED that I acquired, because shortly into my rum journey, I took a trip to Canada and on the US-CAN border I stopped by duty free and got a whole liter of it for like $85, tax free; it was a crazy good deal. But that's not actually the first one I tried. Also early into my rum journey, I was actually given a sample of ED 15 by an employee of El Dorado for free. I don't know if I really have to do a disclosure, because it was early enough in my journey where my review isn't that good and I want to do a do-over. Oh, I also have a bottle of ED 12, but little did I know, it was actually one of the old bottles from before they severely cut back on the added sugar, so that might not be good to review since it has changed so much since then. So for now, I will start with the basics and worry about the rest later. Maybe there will be a family photo on the beach, maybe there won't be. > Note: I am seeing suggestions that it's a blend of Enmore Coffey and ICBU (Savalle column still). According to quebecrhum, the Savalle mark is the primary component in the blend. Review Smell There's a strong smell of vanilla and coconut, and that classic Puerto Rican "rummy" smell like Bacardi. Also, a slight herbal, earthy scent. Pusser's has a much stronger smell of raisins and prunes, while Hamilton 86 actually has a stronger banana scent. Taste Pretty disappointing, actually. Harsher and less demerara flavor. Compared to the other rums here, it's more like Bacardi because it's just lighter and has more of the coconut vanilla taste of bacardi. In a daiquiri, ED5 is a lot less interesting compared to the 8 year old version. There's just not much rum flavor. Verdict {rating}/10 El Dorado 5 was a bit of a disappointment. I find myself often disappointed by the rums that sort of straddle between the "mixer" and "sipper" tiers as they tend to have less of the young, crisp, punchy flavor, yet are not smooth and rich like their older counterparts. It could also be that I just so strongly associate the flavor of Port Mourant with Demerara, that a rum without it just doesn't even taste like a Demerara rum. I was so shocked by how Bacardi-like ED5 tasted that, on a separate day, I tried it with a fresh palate. And do I get some demerara notes with a completely fresh palate? Yes, there's a bit of earthy, smoky flavor... but it's still dominated by coconut and vanilla notes that are unmistakably Bacardi for me. It's pretty column still forward in flavor, and I guess at its price point, it's competing with Bacardi, in which case, it does beat it in flavor, but not by much. 5.25/10

I was excited, thinking this would be the last of my Oliver & Oliver rums, but then I realized there's still a few more waiting for me. This particular bottle goes by several names depending on the market: most places print a big "25" on the front, but mine has "XO" instead. Ron Cubaney Grand Reserve Tesoro XO 25 Años is me just mashing every variation into one. What can I say about this rum? There is very little information about it online. No details about aging other than it's solera and a maximum of 25 years, no info on the mash or distillate other than that it's triple distilled, no info on any additives or sugar. However, my hydrometer shows a very high amount. It also seems like you can't buy this rum anywhere outside the Dominican Republic and Europe. Also, today is a big day! It's Memorial Day, and I am going to a Memorial Day BBQ. The same one I went to last year, and bought Bumbu because it looked like a cool rum. And that very same day, I made my first post on the /r/rum subreddit. I am bringing a new rum to the BBQ this year, and I promise it's real, sugar-free rum! But it's also not super exciting, because tbh most people there are bourbon drinkers so I am not trying to scare them away a second time. (It's Bacardi 8.) Review Smell Without a doubt, you can smell the sweetness. But there's also a rich, woody, oakiness to it, and actually, side by side with Zacapa 23, they smell almost the same. Taste The palate is surprisingly lacking. It smelled so deep and rich, but then the taste is just okay. A bit of woodiness, a bit sour, vanilla, caramel, a bit of alcohol burn, and a lot of sweetness. Not a ton beyond that. On the finish, there's a bit of the floral note that I typically associate with Cuban and Dominican rums. That being said, it's actually not bad. The sweetness is less overwhelming than I was anticipating, maybe because the rum itself is tannic and slightly sour enough to call for it. It's better than Cubaney Centenario and even Puntacana Club XOX. Not by much, it's still not super exciting, but it actually has decent depth and it's decently balanced. Honestly, I think I also like it about as much as Brugal 1888. Of course, trying them both side by side, they are quite different, with Brugal being much dryer and with a distinct wine note, but the richness of Cubaney is winning me over. I can tell that this was likely made with a heavier column still rum, as it's about as flavorful or maybe slightly more flavorful than Havana Club 7, and they both even share a similar sour tinge. Verdict {rating}/10 For all the grief I gladly give Zacapa for their lack of transparency, I've yet to taste a better solera rum. Cubaney XO is not better, nor is it cheaper. There's no reason to buy this rum. However, of all the rums that I tasted in the DR, as long as you're ok with a sweeter rum, this one now ties with Brugal 1888 and Brugal Extra Viejo for my favorite. For how much sugar I measured, it's surprisingly not overpowering, and on a beach in the DR with a big rock of ice and a few dashes of bitters, I wouldn't think twice about it. It's fine if you don't overthink it. 6.25/10

The Rums of México have been on my radar for a while, mostly because of the overwhelming hype I see for them online. However, after trying several rums from Alambique Serrano and realizing that it's a mixed bag for me, I didn't want to rush and buy these bottles, and maybe wait to try a sample at some point. Well, that some point was this past weekend! This rum is made from sugarcane juice of the Caldo variety and distilled on a four plate copper column still. Review Smell Also very strong brine and grass. But also a distinct pickly olive note to it. Taste I mean, this is tequila. I found it hard to tell apart in flavor from Fortaleza Añejo. It's also a bit smoky and peppery like Criolla, but it just gave me very strong tequila vibes. With papelón con limón, it's kind of just a margarita. Verdict {rating}/10 I sat high upon that rooftop, drinking Fortaleza, and thinking "man, this is probably really good tequila. It's a damn shame that I don't like tequila." I have similar feelings about Caldo. If you love tequila, this might be the rum for you. And real can recognize real, but while I can drink it and feel that it's just a good product, I thought that it's relatively middle of the road in terms of my enjoyment. I just don't really like it. 5.5/10

The Rums of México have been on my radar for a while, mostly because of the overwhelming hype I see for them online. However, after trying several rums from Alambique Serrano and realizing that it's a mixed bag for me, I didn't want to rush and buy these bottles, and maybe wait to try a sample at some point. Well, that some point was this past weekend! This rum is made from molasses and muck fermented for 15 days and distilled on a copper hybrid still. Review Smell Very strong dubble bubble. There's a hint of some fruity Jamaican funk, almost like Worthy Park overproof, but fake strawberry candy is the predominant note. Taste Kind of like Hampden rums, it's kind of hard for me to drink this just because it's so overwhelming. It doesn't help that it's over 57% ABV as well. The initial sensation is not that great. Strong flavor of strawberry candy, industrial glue, bitterness, and olives, though it finishes fruity with pineapple and banana. There is a lot going on in this bottle. I was hoping that mixing it with papelón con limón would open it up more, but it didn't. It was still industrial, fake candy, and somehow briny (even though it's made from molasses) and just didn't make the best drink. It's actually kind of savory, and I wasn't expecting that. Overall it wasn't bad, but it's overwhelming and complex in a way that I found hard to appreciate. Verdict {rating}/10 Maybe my expectations were just a bit shattered by me going into this hoping for another Hampden. This isn't it, and it's really hard to categorize it as I really don't think I've had a Caribbean rum quite like it. It's quite hard to drink neat, and I don't think that papelón con limón was the right mixer to tame it. It was a wild ride just sipping it, but I don't really know what I could mix it with to properly enjoy it. Just for the ride, though, it deserves a 6/10

The Rums of México have been on my radar for a while, mostly because of the overwhelming hype I see for them online. However, after trying several rums from Alambique Serrano and realizing that it's a mixed bag for me, I didn't want to rush and buy these bottles, and maybe wait to try a sample at some point. Well, that some point was this past weekend! This rum is made from sugarcane juice of the Caña Criolla variety and distilled on a four plate copper column still. Review Smell Very strong brine and grass. Very similar to a savory agricole like HSE blanc. Taste Very strong flavor of agricole, a bit peppery, and has a pretty distinct smoky note. It actually instantly reminded me of Clairin Le Rocher. It makes an awesome drink with papelón con limón. It's Smoky, fruity, and grassy, like a smoked 'ti punch. Very complex, very interesting to just hold in your mouth. A lot more flavors open up with a bit of dilution and lime. Verdict {rating}/10 Definitely my favorite of the bunch. As you know, I am not a huge fan of really savory, grassy rums, but this one really is quite good. It very much reminds me of a Haitian clairin, such as Le Rocher. Very strong flavor, very complex, and if you love clairins, I think you will love this rum. 7.5/10

I mean, this is the most obvious Kraken knockoff that I have seen so far. It's a Total Wine special and it's cheaper than the real thing, so let's see how it holds up. I've just been really busy lately so I am picking something up from the backlog. Expect better stuff soon! Review Smell Vanilla extract, caramel, buttered popcorn, sweet, and artificial. But it's heavily leaning towards vanilla. Kraken smells similar but much lighter on the vanilla. Taste I mean... it's harsh and unpleasant, as expected. Very heavy on vanilla and sweetness. A bit of caramel on the back. It's not great and definitely kind of fake tasting, but Kraken is somehow worse. Bitter spices, none of which I can really discern, and a syrupy medicinal sweetness. Both do not have very good base rums, but I can deal with a sweet vanilla bomb more than the concoction in Kraken. Of course, there is a 0% chance you buy these rums for anything but mixing with cola, so I tried them with Pepsi. Unsurprisingly, Jonah's Curse was also noticably better than Kraken in Pepsi. It makes like a vanilla caramel Pepsi and it's surprisingly drinkable. Kraken is also improved by being mixed in Pepsi, but it's still not a flavor that I prefer. Verdict {rating}/10 These rums are not really meant to be drunk neat, but I prefer Jonah's Curse over Kraken. Still, I vastly prefer Coruba, Myers's, Goslings, even Bacardi Black if I must have a black rum. Kraken is special to me, because it's the rum I drank during college, and I finished the last of it off for my first review. But now, Kraken is like an old friend that you met again for the first time in years, and you realize that they are actually a total loser. Jonah's Curse is not good, but it's better than Kraken.

I've reviewed several cachaças before, mostly ones I had as one-offs, but there is only one brand that I regularly see in liquor stores: Leblon. Sure, if I do some hunting, I can find Cachaça 51 or even Novo Fogo, but Leblon is the one that you just see everywhere. Review Smell Grassy, briny, slightly sweet. It smells extremely similar to my HSE martinique agricole blanc. No real fruit or funk, just smells like grass and brine. Taste Leblon tastes quite grassy and briny. However, I would say, it tastes very much like HSE, but HSE is both bolder in taste and also harsher in burn. Leblon is just weaker. Both really don't have much complexity. I made two... daiquiris? I guess I'd piss off two countries by not using their preferred term for the drink, but I combined Leblon and HSE with sugar and lime. Call it caipirinha and 'ti punch if you will. Anyway, as expected, the HSE was much stronger, but actually, in Leblon's lightness comes ease of drinking. If you really love the taste of cane juice, Leblon will leave you disappointed, but if you are like me and don't really prefer it, Leblon comes off as tolerable and more enjoyable. Verdict {rating}/10 I would still rather have Bacardi. That's just me, and I can recognize that agricole and cachaça have a following, but my opinions are mine, and I'd rather have a daiquiri with Bacardi. But it wasn't bad. I'm sure I would probably enjoy Novo Fogo more, just as I have enjoyed agricoles that are better quality than HSE. I haven't reviewed it yet, but WP 9th floor WPE-CJN is incredible. For now, Leblon is a 4/10.

Time to finish up Barceló. Sorry for skipping the last post. I was in Atlanta this past weekend and was very busy. Review Smell It's much lighter smelling than Barceló Imperial. It's less woody, and also has less red wine character than Brugal XV, which shares a similar position and price point. The primary scent is alcohol with a bit of vanilla. Taste Trying it neat, it's light and not bad. It's not too sweet, and there is a slight woodiness to it, and shares a similar profile to Bermudez and Brugal rums that is hard to describe, but I pretty much feel like I can recognize the Dominican terroir when I taste it. However, it's not as bold as Imperial, and in fact I would say that Gran Añejo tastes pretty much like a blander, harsher Imperial. In a daiquiri, I put it head to head with Brugal Añejo, Barceló Dorado, and Bacardi Gold. I would say that the harshness on all three is about equal, and totally managable in a daiquiri, but the Gran Añejo daiquiri just didn't have the flavor to back it up. Barceló Dorado and Bacardi Gold were better, and Brugal Añejo was my favorite. Of course, if you're in the Dominican Republic, the best daiquiri rum you can buy at the airport is Havana Club 3. Verdict {rating}/10 This rum faces the same crisis as Brugal XV. It's not that great as a sipper, and for just a few bucks more, you can get the next tier of rum which is far better for sipping. But for mixing, it's actually worse than its cheaper counterpart. It exists pretty much to fill the middle price point, and I don't see myself ever preferring this rum over the alternatives.