1 hour ago, FrogPrincesse said:I guess you could ask him directly!
I would say I'm adverse to pestering bloggers but you know that would be a lie 
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In the meantime I think I'm just not going to get the kind of answer I am after (as people are familiar with one thing or the other depending on which side of the Atlantic they sit) so I might be brave and undertake a taste-off. I will of course share the results in case there's anyone else sad enough out there to obsessively agonise over such a 1st world problem! I will trawl the books for ideas but if you or anyone else has suggestions for some good mixed drinks calling for dark rum/dark jamaican that would serve a comparison, I'd love to hear them. I'm going to make a day of it and look at demerara as well (and a bit of crossover). Based on what I've read elsewhere I'm going to try:
In the dark category:
Gosling's Black Seal
Blackwell Jamaican Rum
A 4:1 mix of Appleton Extra : Smith & Cross
A 3:1 mix of Wood's 100 Old Navy Rum : Smith & Cross OR Wray & Nephew Overproof OR try both combos
(The last 2 are based on a reddit thread asking about a sub for Coruba dark, one person suggested that the Appleton/S&C blend is the closest they've got, another person suggested Wood's on it's own but I think it needs a bit of Jamaican funk from the S&C or W&N)
I'm totally aware Gosling's is the odd one out but according to Martin Cate it fits and I think it'll be the closest sub to Cruzan Blackstrap I have if I top it up with some molasses syrup.
In Demerara:
El Dorado 8 yr
Lemon Hart 80
El Dorado 12 yr and/or 15 yr
Wood's 100
Skipper
I think the obvious choice for Demerara is a Queen's park swizzle? According to Martin Cate, again, LH 80 is supposedly more in keeping with a dark, so I may pit it into both taste-offs.
Does this sound ridiculous and overblown?? Does anyone fancy a trip over from the States to provide a reference for the comparison 
Side note: cocktails + mild autism is a great combo
