White Rums

[El Ron de Cuba]

Bolivar,

I wish I could have had a little bit of the Blanco. It was the one HC rum I didn't get to try before I left Cuba; I wish I could have. I brought back to the US 1 bottle 7 anos, 1 Varadero 7 anos, 2 anejo oro, 1 anejo reserva, and 1 3 anos. I really wish I would have forgotten about the oro; it's okay, but I honestly don't like it for a sipping rum and it's too bold to substitute for a white rum...so it ends up being mixed with coke a lot...I do really enjoy the 3 anos in mixed drinks (even straight), though, so I wish I had a few more bottles...and could try your blanco!

In other news...if I want a Barbancourt rum for mixing or sipping, what should I go for? I'd like something white, if possible, or very light gold in color if only for the appearance of my drinks I just can't tell if the dark bottle means darker rum or what...lol

Thanks everyone,

Bruce

[Bolivar Petit Corona]

Bruce, you should devolop a friendship with someone in Canada, or better yet, Buffalo.

3 or 4 or us tried a little of the Blanco neet, it was good that way, too.

[Ed Hamilton]

Barbancourt does bottle a white rum but it is hard to find.

As for the colored bottle, it is often difficult to discern the color of the spirit since bottles are colored. For the distillery this serves two purposes. One, it makes the spirit look darker and Second, it reduces the problem of color changes over time. Every barrel does not yield the same color after aging so unless the distiller adds a little caramel there will be differences from in color from batch to batch.

White rums are generally considered sipping rums, but instead of Coke, I mix them with a little lime and soda, or a little ginger ale. Coke seems to mask the taste of almost everything since it is much more acidic than other mixers. Fresh fruit juice is the best.

Has anyone tried fresh mango juice and white rum?

[alphaiii]

Just wondering what you thought of Mount Gay Special Reserve light rum.....

....Anyone here try it, and if so what did you think?

No opinions on this rum?

[El Ron de Cuba]

Alpha,

Just wondering: is this the same as the "Mt. Gay Sugarcane Brandy"? Oddly enough, I found this at Deep Creek Lake, MD in McHenry Beverage on Rt. 219...did not expect that at all!

Bruce

[Jason Perlow]

Saw a Pyrat white rum at a liquor store yesterday. Attractive bottle but I didn't buy it -- first time I heard of a Pyrat white, though.

[alphaiii]

Alpha,

Just wondering: is this the same as the "Mt. Gay Sugarcane Brandy"? Oddly enough, I found this at Deep Creek Lake, MD in McHenry Beverage on Rt. 219...did not expect that at all!

Bruce

No, it's a different product. I just can't seem to find anything about it. No reveiws or taste tests, no opinions on here. It just suprises me that a Mount Gay product seems so unknown.

[westsail]

On my last trip to the British Virgin Islands we stopped by at the Callwood Distillery ( as is my habit) and found it to be as pleasurable as ever ( after 200 + years why change ) Anyway , we tried the Arundel white rum , which I expected to taste just a little harsher than battery acid. Oh my !! It was fantastic! I have never beeen a fan of white rum , but this really opened my eyes. I guess being a rum agricole helps unaged rums as well as its darker cousins. If any of you get to the BVI, the Callwood distillery on Tortola is well worth a visit,they well give you a short tour and pour a sample of all 3 of their products ( dark, white, spiced ). I enjoy the white with a slash of tonic and a little lime. Yum Yum.

[Ed Hamilton]

Pyrat White rum is a new blend to complement their other rums. Light and dry and a pretty good mixer with tonic and a little lime.

There are a number of bottlers that are offering white rums to complement their other more expensive rums, seems the number of white rums is growing with the market.

[westsail]

I'm currently enjoying a bottle of La Muny....rhum blanc agricole from Martinique. This lovely stuff just might make me a white rum drinker after all. ( Not that I'll get my hands on another bottle any time soon )

Edited September 20, 2004 by westsail (log)

[Ed Hamilton]

LaMauny white rhum agricole is very different from other white rums distilled from molasses. It is very flavorful and full of aroma. Distillled to only 72% alcohol by volume, rhum agricole captures much more of the flavor of the rhum than that distilled to 95% alcohol after being distilled from fermented molasses.

[drcocktail]

Hi. I'm so used to being a know-it-all, this is my first post in these waters. I mean direct or online contact with the rum greats of the world, Edward Hamilton right here in this forum with his amazing geographic and sipping knowledge, Steve Remsberg with his astonishing collection of VERY vintage rums, and Jeff "Beachbum" Berry with his platinum palate for the complexities of tiki drinks...it's been enough to keep even a blabbermouth like me from waxing too pithy on subject rum!

But I must take the plunge, Ed. I've been following your adventures since you first put up the old pink Tapia website. I sure am glad this blog format has expanded our internet info-gathering and communicating horizons! Though I remain largely mute on the subject, my relationship with rum is one of love - and I keep a LOT of rum and related spirits on hand. Many of my past and current holdings may be viewed here.

That said, there is one rum related product also seen on the site which long ago wrested itself from my grasp. This is a mantra more and more people are repeating too: I want my Pimento Dram!

Wray & Nephew called theirs simply "Pimento Liqueur" -though eventually they gave it the cute name of Berry Hill Allpice Liqueur, presumably so folks wouldn't think it was a cordial composed of the red wadded up things that inhabit olives. Sangster actually CALLED theirs Pimento Dram, but seems to have discontinued its manufacture some time ago. So, Ed, here are my questions: Why did Sangsters stop making the stuff? What can be done to encourage W&N to A) sell the stuff online and B) export less than a container into the U.S.? Finally, failing all else, how might I, short of a Jamaican vacation, replenish MY supplies of the stuff? I think it is the most versatile liqueur in the world, and I have 1/2" left in my last bottle!

Please help, my sanity depends on it!

Thanks! --Doc.

[Bill Poster]

I get the impression premium white rums, along with'premium' cachasas are the growth product at present. White spirits are the big seller(vodkas and Bacardi), so i guess its only natural this should happen. Rum brands are making more effort on the packaging too.

I remember trying Don Q many years ago and thinking it was vodka. Would like to try some of the above mentioned white rums, along with Orinocco and yes, 10 cane just out of curiosity.

Does anyone know of any more white rums due to be launched? I predict Cruzan may target Bacardi, now they are owned by Absolut.

Edited April 23, 2006 by Bill Poster (log)

[Ed Hamilton]

There are a number of other white rums coming to the market. Some are better than others, but until they are actually released I don't like to comment on them since rum companies commonly tweak things a bit before they launch a product in a new market.

[Bill Poster]

Can you give us any names? Are they a mixture of styles and premium?

[eje]

[...]

I remember trying Don Q many years ago and thinking it was vodka.

[...]

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I tried Pyrat White Rum last year and had a similar response to it. So clean as to be nearly vodka.

On Ed's recommendation I picked up the Flor de Cana Extra Dry, and quite enjoy it. Makes an excellent daiquiri, is very reasonable, and has a decent amount of rum character.

There is a one page feature on 10 Cane in this month's Gourmet magazine. Reading it, I was interested to discover that they don't burn the cane fields before harvesting. I guess, they just cut them green and press.

[Bill Poster]

Anyone tried Bambu? Its a premium vodka-like white rum produced in Antigua; I would guess by Antigua distillery?

[Ed Hamilton]

Bambu is produced by the Antigua Distillery. It is a very light bodied white rum bottled in a sculptured glass bottle. The label proclaims that this rum is four times distilled which accounts for the very light taste.

[stickyii]

I found out that I can obtain both Brugal white and Don Q in Pennsylvania. I am greatly pleased that I can also order a single bottle of each as SLOs.

Any suggestion as to which to try first?

Note: My goal is replace bacardi silver, which currently functions as my light Puerto Rican rum when making cocktails (i.e. Mojito, Waikikian, etc.)

[Ed Hamilton]

I would suggest trying both of these rums straight before you mix them. Pour an equal measure in two similar glasses and assess the aroma. After about five minutes smell them again and note any differences.

Then I'd start making cocktails and evaluating the fruit of your labors.

[elixirofthetropics]

I recently read somewhere that if you're drinking white rum you might as well drink Bacardi since they're all the same.

There are huge differences in white rums made from molasses.

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I strongly agree. There are differences in dryness, body, and tasting notes among those that I've tried: Cruzan Light, Bacardi Silver, Brugal White, and Appleton White. I prefer the latter 2 as they've more flavor. I don't like Bacardi Silver as it seems that it is too neutral (no taste IMHO).

Don Q I've not tried but will if I find it.

I recently tried Aguardiente (advertised as a cane neutral spirit). I learned a little later after my first try of it that they add liquorice flavoring to it.

[KatieLoeb]

I recently tasted the Appleton White side by side with Bacardi and was stunned by how much more flavorful it was. Sadly the Appleton White doesn't appear to be available in PA, but I personally intend to try and remedy this. You might have to visit a *cough* "neighboring" state.

[stickyii]

I recently tasted the Appleton White side by side with Bacardi and was stunned by how much more flavorful it was.  Sadly the Appleton White doesn't appear to be available in PA, but I personally intend to try and remedy this.  You might have to visit a *cough* "neighboring" state.

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Katie,

You mentioned you might try to remedy the fact that a certain spirit isn't carried in the state. Is there something the average consumer can do to assist in this or to take action?

[KatieLoeb]

I recently tasted the Appleton White side by side with Bacardi and was stunned by how much more flavorful it was.  Sadly the Appleton White doesn't appear to be available in PA, but I personally intend to try and remedy this.  You might have to visit a *cough* "neighboring" state.

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Katie,

You mentioned you might try to remedy the fact that a certain spirit isn't carried in the state. Is there something the average consumer can do to assist in this or to take action?

←

Since I have to deal directly with the purveyors, I plan to find out which one carries the Appleton's line for SLO orders and head up the flagpole there. I figure if they already carry the other items in the product line, perhaps no one has expressed an interest in the White before, and they just need to know there are interested potential customers. You (or any interested individual) could mention it to the SLO manager at your local store and perhaps if they see a groundswell of interest they might be more inclined to jump through whatever hoops need to be jumped through to apply to carry a new product in the Commonwealth of PA.

It was really incredible how much better it was in the side by side comparison. Go find some and let me know if you agree.

[Ed Hamilton]

Appleton white is another of those rums which is aged and then carbon filtered to remove the coloring gained from aging which makes it so much better.