I haven't had that many aged agricoles before. I am not the biggest fan of agricole, to be honest, but some of them can be fun and interesting to try, and when I see a 50mL in a random liquor store collecting dust, I jump on the opportunity. Review Smell It's like I walked into a yankee candle store. I'm getting a very particular apple pie candle scent (not apple pie, but apple pie candle in particular), and, of course, some grassy notes. Taste It's clearly a pretty young rhum. My guess it's aged for about a year. A bit harsh, but also it's 45%. It has such an interesting taste of granny smith apples. I am getting just strong sour green apple flavors on top of the typical tequila-like young grassy taste that I got from other agricoles like HSE blanc, which are honestly pretty subdued in this rhum. It's also not as fruity as San Zanj, but it's very specifically quite apple-y. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 7/10 on 1/21/26) It's interesting. I couldn't come up with a cocktail that works with a lightly aged agricole, but it's ok. I think this rum is perfectly sippable neat. If you like agricoles, you might like this one more than I did. I thought it was just alright. Not super complex. It has a bit of the typical agricole grassy funk, and it has some green apple notes that I also tasted in the (in my opinion far superior) Saint James 6yr aged agricole, so overall, this rhum is not very special— the blue cane juice didn't blow me away. But it's not bad for what it is. I think it's a competent example of a lightly aged Martinique agricole January 21, 2026 Update: Not much more to add, I am just amending the score down to a 5.5 to reflect my new scoring system.

I was at a Halloween party two weeks ago, and I stopped at a nearby liquor store just to see what I can see, and I saw Gosling's Gold rum. I've never seen this before! I had already tried Black Seal and had not yet tried 151, so I expected basically something akin to Black Seal, but a bit lighter and crisper. It was also only $20, so I figured that it was worth the experiment. And once again, I could have sworn that I took a picture of the bottle in a nice place before it was opened, but I can't find the picture now, so I just quickly took another one in front of my dresser. Man, I miss the summer, when I used to take my rums out on a photo shoot at the beach or the park... Also, it's called Gold Seal, and the sealion on the label is gold, which further reinforced my mistaken idea that they just think that seals and sealions are the same thing. > Note: The exact formula is a trade secret, but most likely all sugarcane molasses. Fortune.com says that the distillate for Black Seal comes from Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad, and the same may be true for Gold Seal. Blend consists of several rums from several Caribbean islands are distilled variously in pot and column stills before being shipped to Bermuda. Does not make an age statement, but the company claims that the blended product is aged in re-charred once-used American oak bourbon barrels. Review Smell I'm pretty much just getting very basic vanilla and coconut rum notes, much like with Bacardi. It's nowhere near as sweet smelling as Black Seal. Taste It has a good, strong taste of lightly aged Spanish-style rum. Sweet, vanilla, coconut, and still tastes kind of young. It finishes with notes of butterscotch and bitter cough syrup. It has a slight bite to it, but it's nowhere near as rough as Bacardi Gold, while also being much more flavorful. However, I am missing basically any funk that I recognize. I tried it against Havana Club 3 and Gold Seal was not as fruity and flavorful, and I tried it against Diplo Planas, and it didn't have as deep and rich a taste of oak aging. So, it sits somewhere in between those two rums and Bacardi gold. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 6/10 on 1/21/26) I am just kind of getting disappointed trying anything from Goslings, after how much I enjoyed Black Seal. Sure, I only spent $20, but for $22 I could have gotten Diplo Planas or Havana Club 3 and have been much happier with the bottle. It's not a complete dud— I prefer it to Bacardi Gold. But this is solidly relegated to being a forgettable mixer, and even at $20, I feel like it's not a good value when you have much better white rums in the same price range. January 21, 2026 Update: Yeah, it's basically Bacardi Gold with just a bit less burn. Meh. 5/10.

Literally a few days ago, as I was already planning on posting my Gosling's Black Seal review, I went to a friend's house, and he had 151 there. So, of course, with permission, I helped myself to some and did a back and forth between regular Black Seal and the 151. Unfortunately, I failed to snap a picture of the bottle. Maybe some of you with a keen eye might have noticed something off about the image. Yes, it is an edited picture of the regular Gosling's Black Seal that I took and posted with my previous review. No, I didn't use AI, though it looks very convincing. I had to dig deep into my art skills to recreate the look of the 151 bottle. > Note: The exact formula is a trade secret, but most likely all sugarcane molasses. Fortune.com says that the distillate for Black Seal comes from Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad, and the same may be true for Gold Seal. Blend consists of several rums from several Caribbean islands are distilled variously in pot and column stills before being shipped to Bermuda. Does not make an age statement, but the company claims that the blended product is aged in re-charred once-used American oak bourbon barrels. Review Smell When I described the regular Black Seal, I remember it smelling strongly of brown sugar. I was expecting 151 to be basically the same, but even the smell immediately throws me off. I get the smell of those cheap fake lemon candies(https://allcitycandy.com/cdn/shop/products/126920-01lemonhead-candy-5lb-bag2048x.jpg?v=1720636061), and nothing else. Taste It's quite bold, but surprisingly sippable. That's not to say it's pleasant. It's very strong, but it's not completely overwhelming like Bounty 151 and Forres Park Puncheon are. Of all the dirt cheap 151 proof rums, this one might be the easiest to tolerate neat, even though I don't imagine it's really meant for that. The primary taste that I am getting continues to be fake lemon candy, but after it fades away, it melts into a warm vanilla butterscotch, with a hint of bitter nail polish remover. It is far from Jamaican, though. I am getting zero jamaican notes from the 151. I tried making a daiquiri, and it was basically impossible to balance it. I ended up using equal parts rum, water, lime juice, and syrup, and it still didn't come out quite right. I made a daiquiri with Black Seal as well, and side by side, they're quite similar, but again, Black Seal just has that nice Jamaican funk, and 151 leans more into fake lemon. 151 is also just not as fun to drink when it's watered down to normal proofs. Maybe I should have made a zombie with it. Regardless, I dropped a bit into some pepsi zero, and it was good, which is the only cocktail that really matters. In Europe, they even sell Pepsi Max with a fake lemon taste, and it's alright. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 6/10 on 1/21/26) I can't say that I thought it was great, but I'll say that it's probably the tastiest 151 that I have tried. Maybe that's not saying much. I am still on the hunt for Hamilton and Lemon Hart 151. Black Seal 151 is not worlds different from Black Seal 40%, but it's different enough to matter. The fake lemon taste and the lack of a Jamaican funk really threw me off, and honestly, I am glad that I didn't buy this bottle and instead tried a bit at a friend's house. Planteray OFTD is in the same category and even sub-category, and it just completely blows Goslings 151 out of the water. January 21, 2026 Update: Yeah, it's literally high octane lemon drops. Maybe it's someone's vibe. Maybe in some coke. But it's really mid at best. It's a 5/10 now.

Not much of a story behind this rum, other than the fact that I actually bought it back in the summer, and I forgot to take a picture of it, so I was sitting on the review until I finally just set the bottle down in front of a house plant and called it good enough. I later learned that "black seal" is meant to describe the fact that the bottles used to literally be sealed with black wax. For the longest time, I was laboring under a misapprehension that it described the animal on their logo, and I was mildly annoyed, because it is clearly a sealion. > Note: The exact formula is a trade secret, but most likely all sugarcane molasses. Fortune.com says that the distillate for Black Seal comes from Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad, and the same may be true for Gold Seal. Blend consists of several rums from several Caribbean islands are distilled variously in pot and column stills before being shipped to Bermuda. Does not make an age statement, but the company claims that the blended product is aged in re-charred once-used American oak bourbon barrels. Review Smell It smells very sweet. It doesn't even have a strong hit of alcohol or funk, it just smells like I am smelling a freshly opened bag of brown sugar. Lots of molasses and caramel scents. Taste I brought out Pusser's blue label and Myers's for this comparison, and I would say that immediately, it is very similar to Myers's in flavor. In fact, if I wasn't trying them side by side, but instead ordered Myers's at a bar, and they gave me Goslings, I would literally not think that anything was amiss. That said, compared to Myers's, Goslings Black Seal has a bit more of a berry taste to it. It's also surprisingly smooth, at least compared to Myers's, but also, the Jamaican funk is a bit more muted. It also has a very slight industrial taste that I associate with Jamaican rums like Myers's. It would not surprise me at all if the Jamaican component of this rum was from NRJ. In a daiquiri, Goslings actually gets better, as the funk comes through more, and rather than the mild industrial aftertaste of Myers's, Goslings has more of a mild aftertaste of wild berry punch, which actually is nice. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 6.5/10 on 5/15/26) (Edited from 8/10 on 1/21/26) I would say that I like it slightly more than Myers's and about equally as Pusser's, and since I gave Pusser's an 8/10, and downgraded Myers's to 7.5/10, that makes this score easy. It's an 8/10. Simple, sweet, tasty. January 21, 2026 Update: Really, I overrated Pusser's, Myers's, and Gosling's. Going back and tasting them, I'll put them all tied at 6.5/10. They're good, but definitely pretty much budget mixers. May 15, 2026 Update: Gosling's is pretty noticeably a step below Myers's and Pusser's. Still not bad, but the flavor just isn't as.... there.

There was a period of time before I really got into rum last December, so I was still drinking Bacardi and Kraken and thinking nothing of it... but I still was curious about other rums. I vaguely heard that Cuban rums are supposedly really good, so I got myself a bottle of Havana Club at some liquor store just before a party. Boy, was I disappointed. > Note: Originally made by Arechabala family in Cuba. Now manufactured by Bacardi in Puerto Rico. Review Smell Much like bacardi, there is a slight vanilla coconut "rum" smell, overshadowed by a strong punch of alcohol fumes. Side by side with Bacardi Superior, I really can't sense a difference in the nose. Taste First off, it's very similar to Bacardi Superior in a lot of ways. It's not far off from just plain old Bacardi. But it has a slight cumin-mustard spice note to it. Very slight, but otherwise it's just a milder Bacardi with the same amount of burn. Which, actually is a bit unfortunate, because I tend to like the rummy flavor of Bacardi, and I don't want it to be toned down in flavor of some spices that I don't particularly like. In a daiquiri, the difference only gets bigger. Bacardi makes a perfectly okay daiquiri. Havana Club just has... something off about it. There's just that cumin taste that doesn't really work, and the more I drink it, the more I prefer the Bacardi daiquiri. Verdict {rating}/10 So, my understanding is that this recipe is meant to capture the original taste of pre-revolution Cuban rum. The Cuban government's Havana Club is, allegedly, a departure from how good Cuban rum used to be. If that's the case, then I feel agitated towards communism by this rum. The Cuban government's Havana Club is probably my favorite line of Spanish style rums. Spanish style isn't my favorite, but the Cuban government really doesn't miss. Bacardi's attempt to revive the old rum with their Añejo Blanco? There's really nothing about it that Bacardi's more popular option doesn't do a bit better.

So I was in Iceland recently, and looking it up, I could find very little info on Icelandic rum. After all, Iceland isn't exactly a country known for processing sugarcane. I checked the duty free website, and I saw that they had one Icelandic rum: Reykjavík spiced rum. So imagine my surprise when I come to the airport on my way home, and they actually have 3 Icelandic rums! My last review was on Reykjavík rum. Aside from Hvítserkur, there was one more rum at the airport that surprised me: Stormur veðrað romm. From my reseatch, Stormur is a very new Icelandic rum. It only started selling in 2024, with their expressions of veðrað romm (weather rum) and hátíðarromm (festival rum), and there may be more, it's very hard to research this when I don't speak Icelandic or live in the country, but I very intentionally did not buy this rum, because it came out to about $60 for a 70cL bottle, and, much like Reykjavík rum, it's most probably not even distilled in Iceland, but rather shipped in and blended and bottled there. Also, it was discontinued everywhere except for duty free due to a mass recall of one of their batches as a result of contamination by glass shards(https://www.vinbudin.is/heim/umatvr/frettir/tabid-2459/innkollun-a-stormur-vedrad-romm). Not to say that I fear endangered by the batch that made it to the airport, but, I am not confident at all in this rum's continued existence since it's so new and expensive and already scandal-ridden. So with that in mind, I went with the more reasonably priced and better established Hvítserkur rum. I wish they had aged at the airport, but they only had spiced and white, so I went with white. I emailed the owner (Hakon Freyr Hovdenak), and he confirmed that the 3 year old (aged in sherry cask) is only available directly from the distillery, and that there's a 7 year old on the way. > Note: Mash from Jamaican sugarcane molasses, fermented somewhere in the Caribbean (neither the owner nor website gave specifics), then imported to Iceland. Vacuum-distilled at 35-37 degrees in a continuous vacuum column still hand-made by the owner of the distillery. This allows it to be distilled at a lower boiling point and keeps many esters from being cooked away by a traditional distillation. It's super cool, check out their video https://youtu.be/CnTf5YURYtM. I could not find a no-additives statement anywhere. With so much written about how pure and clean this rum is, I was surprised that the owner did not respond to my query about whether he can confirm that there is no sugar or other additives added. He responded to my other questions, but not that one. Review Smell Funky. Banana, pineapple, and basically smells very typically Jamaican. It smells almost identical to Myers's original and Planteray 3 stars. Myers's just has a slight hint of industrial rubber, which normally doesn't bother me too much, but like 3 stars, Hvítserkur just has none of that taste. Taste Pretty much tastes the same as Planteray 3 stars, but with a bit more light, fruity funk. Xaymaca was noticably bolder in flavor, but it's an aged rum. It has a similar crispness and smoothness to Planteray 3 stars. Likewise, it makes a nicer daiquiri than either Xaymaca or 3 stars. It's smoothness and lightness are just perfect, and the fruity funk is bold and shines through the daiquiri. It's not as fruity and funky as Xaymaca, but in a daiquiri, I prefer something a bit less aged. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 8.5/10 on 1/4/26) I am sad that the airport didn't have any of the aged rum. The white unaged rum makes such a nice daiquiri. The vacuum distilation is supposed to keep more of the esters and reduce the burn over traditional distillation, and I don't know if it makes a huge difference, but it's definitely got a slight edge over Planteray 3 stars. Maybe I won't go so far as to say it's tied with Xaymaca, but it's definitely my favorite white rum so far. 8.5/10 I also just wanted to mention how much I appreciate Hovdenak distillery. So many rums try to hide their process and what they add. Hovdenak does tours of their distillery, they have videos showing it off, and the owner will even respond to your emails.... mostly. I really would have liked a statement on any additives or sugar present. The distillery proudly claims to use 100% pure crisp glacial water and 100% green geothermal power... which isn't so much a beauty of this distillery as it is a beauty of Iceland as a country. I highly recommend you visit the country, and, if you're there, you might as well pick up this rum from a town right next to Reykjavik. January 4, 2026 Update: A lot of the rums that have enjoyed high scores saw pretty steep reductions with my new scoring system, but not Hvítserkur. Every time I try it again, it holds up surprisingly well, against even well respected rums like Clairin Sajous. I am only reducing its score to 8/10. Fantastic rum.

So I was in Iceland recently, and looking it up, I could find very little info on Icelandic rum. After all, Iceland isn't exactly a country known for processing sugarcane. I checked the duty free website, and I saw that they had one Icelandic rum: Reykjavík spiced rum. So, of course, I bought it. The plastic bottle, and the fact that they produce every different type of alcohol, does not inspire confidence in the quality. Review Smell It smells sweet, and with some vanilla and coriander, as well as a bit of a smell of alcohol. Taste Very sweet. Almost offensively sweet. There is a mild spice flavor, which doesn't hit you hard like a lot of spiced rums (like Kraken), it's just a mild bit of... I think vanilla and coriander. I might be getting the spice wrong, it's a bit chocolatey, but I think it's coriander seed. A lot of spiced rums are just a mouthful of pie spice like cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice— this one is milder and I don't really get cinnamon from it. Mostly coriander, which I think is an underrated spice in liquor. I just wish it wasn't so damn sweet. Dumping it all into a cola... yeah, it's pretty solid. It's an interesting flavor that goes well with cola. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 8.5/10 on 1/20/26) I'm not the biggest fan of spiced rum, but this was a competent attempt at it. The underlying rum is nothing to write home about. I think it's just a generic neutral rum. The distillery doesn't claim to distill this rum anywhere, just to "produce it", which I take to mean that maybe they import generic rum (like from St. Croix or WIRD) and then spice it locally then bottle it. I don't know this for a fact, though. I did email them requesting for any info on their rum, but have not received a response. The spice was nice, but it's brought down by boring rum, and further ruined by being too sweet. It's just alright. Drop it in some coke and forget it. 5.5/10 January 20, 2026 Update: Not much more to add, I am just amending the score down to a 4.5 to reflect my new scoring system.

Despite trying the Ron Abuelo 7 Yr earlier, it was only because I saw it in a small bottle. Most of the time, when I see a Ron Abuelo, it's the Añejo. This must be the one most people buy. Anyway, same place that had that crappy Ron Viejo de Caldas, had this one as well. I think it's a bad sign, but at least this one is in an actual bottle. Review Smell Smells light, with notes of oak, vanilla, and fruit. It's less oak-forward than Ron Abuelo 7 and less fruit-forward than Havana Club 3, but it's similar to both. Taste First off, it's pretty harsh. Not Bacardi harsh, but also, not a smooth sipper, pretty much the same as Ron Abuelo 7. It's pretty light in flavor as well. A bit of oak, but not as much as Ron Abuelo 7, and also a bit of fruit flavor on the back but also a slight bitterness, but all of that is overshadowed by this rum being quite harsh and very sweet. I even think that 7 year is a bit fruitier than this rum. The fruit flavor in Anejo is very light. Ron Abuelo Añejo makes a perfectly servicable daiquiri. It's light, and a step up from Bacardi. Ron Abuelo 7, meanwhile... I don't like my daiquiris oaky, and Ron Abuelo 7 definitely is more oaky, but also, I still like it more, just because of the added fruity complexity and depth. I also should have gone easy on the syrup, because these rums are already annoyingly sweet, and so, they made my daiquiris annoyingly sweet. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 6/10 on 1/20/26) The amount of sugar added appears to be at least as much as Ron Abuelo 7, but the 7 year is a lot more balanced in sweetness and interesting in flavor, and therefore nicer to drink neat, though about equal in harshness, in my opinion. This rum is quite sweet, and even despite the sweetness, it's not smooth, and the actual flavor of the rum is relatively bland. Still, it's not bad by any means. It's just alright. It's also super cheap, so it makes a great rum to just bring to a house party if you're an American in your 20s like me. If you're not an American, just buy Havana Club 3. It's slightly better in every way. 6/10. To put things in perspective, Ron Abuelo Añejo is not as interesting and fruity as Ron Abuelo 7, which is still not as interesting and fruity as Havana Club 3, which is my favorite Spanish-style light rum for daiquiris, and even that can't match Planteray 3 Stars, Copalli white, or San Zanj for fruity flavors. So I probably won't be buying Ron Abuelo again. January 20, 2026 Update: Not much more to add, I am just amending the score down to a 5 to reflect my new scoring system.

Wow! 50 reviews! That's so many! I have tried Appleton's Signature, 8, and 12, back in one of my first reviews. This was a good spread, as I had barely just gotten into rum, and dropping $70 on Appleton 15, just slightly less than the cost of the other 3 combined, seemed like a big ask. Well, the time has come. On a side note, the time has not yet come for 21 year, which costs as much as signature, 8, 12 AND 15 combined. Review Smell Smells like smooth oak and vanilla. Honestly, it smells pretty much like a Spanish-style column still rum. It smells deep and rich like Havana Club 7. Back when I did my review of Appleton 12, I felt like it was overoaked, which made sense at the time, as it was the oakiest and most aged rum that I've tasted so far. But compared to 15, 12 actually has a bit of a funky fruity smell to it. Taste It's extremely smooth. Often, when I first start a drinking session, the first rum tastes harsh, and I need to cycle through the drinks first before I get acclimated to 40%+ ABV hitting my tongue. But Appleton 15 felt like soda on my tongue. Only the slightest tingle to suggest that it's not pure nectar. Havana Club 7 has a deep, rich, complex oaky profile, with no fruit at all, and Appleton 15 is definitely lighter in profile, though it is also complex and oaky, and has the slightest bit of fruit on the back. Appleton 12 is noticably lighter and more fruity and floral, but not as deep and rich as 15. It's a lot lighter in body and flavor. I made daiquiris with all 3 rums, and as always, Havana Club 7 is pretty oaky and tannic. Appleton 15 surprised me. I expected it to be oaky and tannic too, but actually, it's really bright and very much pops in this drink. It makes a very interesting and fruity daiquiri, and I thought that Appleton 12 would be even more fruity than 15, but actually no, its lighter body and flavor lead to a daiquiri that tastes kind of watered down compared to Appleton 15. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 8/10 on 12/12/25) I must reiterate that I am not the biggest fan of very long aged, oaky rums. I am a Jamaica-pilled funkmaxxer. That said, for those of you that like it oakier, you're going to love this rum. It's everything about Appleton 12, but even more. It's a straight upgrade from it. It's deeper, richer, more complex, and more concentrated. Exceptionally smooth and easy sipping. Me, personally? I still prefer it mixed. Probably would make an amazing Mai Tai as the aged Jamaican component. December 12, 2025 Update: I re-reviewed, and I think that my previous findings largely stand. It's just so rich, oaky, caramelly, totally smooth. There is a hint of Jamaican funk, but rather than be the face of the rum, it sort of is like the bass in an orchestra, just accenting the richness and complexity. In fact, the funk comes through a bit more than the 12 in my opinion, so it may actually have a bit more pot still in the mix. Even though it's barrel-driven, unlike Spanish rums, there's just so much more body and complexity to it. Of course, compared to this rum, Signature tastes like Myers's. It's just rather anemic, sweet, funky, and lacking real depth, but it's still good. It just goes to show that Signature is one of my favorite mixing rums, and 15 is one of my favorite sipping rums.

This was the first rum that I had at the first NYC rum club bottle share that I attended, and it might be the one that I spent the most time on because it was just so... different. Review Smell Obviously very deep oak and vanilla scent, as well as an orange peel note, kinda citrusy but also smells kind of bitter, but the nose is mostly the typical oak and vanilla of a long-aged rum. Taste It's hard to even explain because, much like the first time that I had a clairin, or an agricole, I just had zero reference points to compare it to because I haven't had any rums in that genre. The body is very rich and complex, and it tastes very dry and bitter. This rum was begging for a few drops of simple syrup just because I'm sure that a lot of fruity flavors were hiding behind the lack of sweetness. Otherwise, it was very herbal. I got very strong notes of fennel, licorice, and oregano, as well as, of course, oak and vanilla, and there was a citrusy bitter aftertaste, maybe like a grapefruit. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 4/10 on 1/20/26) It reminds me of Bumbu, where the product itself is not horrible— I just wish that it wasn't pretending to be a high end rum. What's telling is that in Europe, it's sold not as rum, but as "spirit drink"(https://www.delicando.com/en/14280/zaya-gran-reserva-spirit-drink-40-vol-07l-in-giftbox). It's okay with cola, and that's about all I have to say about it. 4/10. January 20, 2026 Update: Not much more to add, I am just amending the score down to a 3 to reflect my new scoring system.

This is a rum that I have long been looking for. First off, not every duty free has them, and second, I passed it up for a while due to the price. But, Cuban rums have grown on me, and so I decided to bite the bullet and buy the most expensive rum that I have purchased to date. Review Smell It's a very light smell. A bit vanilla, a bit oak, a bit ethanol. This is a bit of a surprise, because Havana Club 7 yr smells so deep and rich with oak, and Ron Santiago de Cuba 12 yr smells so floral, but Havana Club Selección de Maestros smells so mild. Taste Slightly harsher than Havana Club 7, which is understandable, as it's slightly higher proof. The initial taste that I get is tobacco. I see tobacco a lot in tasting notes, and I never understood how a rum could taste like tobacco, until now. It's kind of smokey, and maybe has a light citrus tang, or some kind of sour note. Of course, overwhelmingly, the predominant taste is still the oak. Overall, it's not super different from Havana Club 7. It's rich, deep, and complex, much like Havana Club 7, and it really doesn't have much in common with Ron Santiago 12 other than the dominating oak taste. Ron Santiago 12 has floral notes, hibiscus tea, caramel, and cantaloupe. Daiquiris often are pretty good at really teasing out the differences. Havana Club 7 is ok, I never really preferred it in a daiquiri, and Selección de Maestros is about the same, but maybe a touch more interesting. Just a bit more depth and complexity shines through, with a bit of a smoky taste. But, at the same time, a lot more burn from the daiquiri with Selección de Maestros vs Havana Club 7. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 6.25/10 on 3/9/26) (Edited from 7/10 on 1/20/26) To be honest, the daiquiri test might be silly, because who is buying Havana Club Selección de Maestros as a mixer? So, aside from that, we have a rum that is very similar to Havana Club 7. It's smokier and oakier than Havana Club 7, but also burns more, and is a lot more expensive. Is it really an upgrade over Havana Club 7? It's hard to say. Tasting them back and forth, I think I might be a smidge more in favor of Havana Club 7. It's just slightly more pleasant to me. But, overall, I can't really say Havana Club Selección de Maestros is even half a point better or worse than Havana Club 7. They're about the same for me, and so yet again, I give a Cuban rum a rating of 7/10. Could I just be a noob who hasn't learned to appreciate finer rums? Yes! January 20, 2026 Update: Maybe I was silly and underrated this originally, but it really is nice when I compare it to some of my other favorites again. I like it a bit more than Diplo Planas, I like it a bit more than HC7, and I just kind of like it slightly less than Ron Santiago 12. It's really a tough call, but I just decided to downgrade it to be equal to Ron Santiago 8, which is just a hair above Havana Club 3 and 7. March 9, 2026 Update: I am upgrading it and RdS 8 to 6.5/10

Whenever I travel, I always pick up a Cuban rum. I don't think that Cuban rum blows me away. I don't think that other Spanish country rums simply can't compete. No, I think that Brugal extra viejo and Zacapa 23 are totally in competition with some of the best that Cuba has to offer. It's just the forbidden fruit, man. I see Brugal extra viejo every time I visit the liquor store, but Cuban rum is only international... In this case, I saw Ron Santiago 8, 11, and 12 in duty free, and I picked up 8 and 12, figuring 3 bottles would just be too much, and 11 is close enough to 12 that I cover my bases with just 8 and 12. I know they use a different blend for 11, it's not like 12 is 11 just held for an extra year, but I wasn't even sure if I would like anything from Ron Santiago, so I settled for these two bottles. I will be comparing them against Havana Club 3 and 7 year rums. Review Smell Both Ron Santigos smell very similar. They're oaky and floral, with 12 having a slightly stronger oak smell, but they're both quite flowery smelling, while Havana Club 3 smells more light and fruity, and Hanava Club 7 smells deep, rich, and woody. Taste Ron Santiago 8 and 12 both also have very similar tastes. In fact, it's quite hard for me to even tell them apart. They're both oaky, floral, and rummy on the front, ending with a bit of tropical fruit flavor, which goes quite long. I tried to tell them apart by just pouring a shot of one, sipping on it for half an hour and thinking about the lingering notes, and doing the same with the other, and they both have basically the same lingering sort of notes that taste like how a flower shop smells, with a bit of hibiscus tea. Havana Club 7 is deep, rich, and complex, but it's very much just oaky, not even slightly fruity or floral. Havana Club 3 is a bit fruity, and actually comes across as a touch grassy, and towards the back has a medium fruity finish. I tried them all in daiquiris as this can sometimes help, but Ron Santiago 8 and 12 become basically indistinguishable from each other. The daiquiri also has floral notes that I find to be quite good. Havana Club 7 continues to make an overoaked daiquiri that I don't really prefer, and Havana Club 3 makes a great daiquiri, which is my favorite of the set. Of course, most Jamaican rums, even Appleton Estate Signature, with its relatively mild funk, still beat Havana Club 3, but just in terms of Cuban rums, there's really no beating it for making cocktails. Verdict {rating}/10 (Edited from 6.5/10 on 3/9/26) (Edited from 7/10 on 1/20/26) A while back, I have Havana Club 3 a 7/10 and Havana Club 7 a 6.5/10, and I would like to amend that to a 7/10, because I think that I didn't regard the deep oaky complexity of Havana Club 7 as much as making cocktails, and I do think that they are very different rums, but equally good in their own way. And, I feel the same way about Ron Santiago. I struggle to tell 8 and 12 apart, but they are a more floral tasting rum, less fruity than Havana Club 3 and less oaky than Havana Club 7, but still perfectly enjoyable. I rate them both 7/10 as well. January 20, 2026 Update: I love the fruity floral taste from Ron Santiago. Previously I scored them equal to Havana Club, but I need to change my score. Ron Santiago 8 year just barely edges out Havana Club 3, and Ron Santiago 12 is basically the same taste as 8, but I do notice that it's slightly more concentrated. The differences at the time seemed miniscule, but now I am willing to award an extra point to 12 over HC3. They're genuinely close to HC3, and HC7 for that matter, but they do edge them out. As such, Ron Santiago 12 is reduced to 6.5/10, above the 6/10 that both HC3 and HC7 occupy. March 9, 2026 Update: I decided that RdS 8 is very close to 12 and I might as well make them both 6.5/10