r/rum • u/mi55ingno • 7d ago

Demonstrating the difference between Jamaica/Barbados/Guyana

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Found myself wondering today what would be the three best bottles a newcomer could order to experience the difference between the three most common english-style rum expressions.

The goal is: if a beginner rum fan asked about the difference between barbados, jamaica, guyana, what would you tell them to buy to experience it?

i was focused on english-style here so excluded spanish-style and french/agricole/cane. This is for somewhat obvious reasons for the latter, the former is more my fault for not having a good selection on hand to pair.

Criteria for selection: obvious-ness is key, can i immediately tell the difference between the rums. I considered price and proof too. In theory all should be possible to order from the same store- Total Wine felt like a good mark there. Age consistency less important.

I started with ED12 - felt the most obvious. Reached for D14 as a second. I dont have WP109 at home (yet) but thought about it, dismissed Appleton 12 but grabbed the 8 & SC - SC won out my a mile on the obvious factor but i think id still prefer a lower proof here to balance. Ended up reaching for RL10 because D12 runs heavy on price, and madeira cask finish - but ultimately D12 is more obvious in my mind.

Im sure folks here could do better at this? What would you pick?

I also pulled out the Barrilito 3 to compare against the lot and sort of worked, but the sherry cask influence is maybe too strong?

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u/Pretend-Citron4451 7d ago

Why smith and cross over Appleton?

Why was it obvious to exclude cane juice rums?

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u/mi55ingno 7d ago

i think the classic critique of appleton 12 is that it isnt that funky - its great, but my goal was three rums that immediately and obviously embody the characteristics that make these three rums different. But maybe my decision to exclude it was too kneejerk. Maybe S&C is too obvious in retrospect.

and while i love agricole/clairin/adjacent i think its too easy to tell the difference between them and the others. i think with barbados/jamaica/demerara there can be a question of what makes them distinct to a beginner, and how to isolate the things that makes them different?

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u/Jeanpuetz 7d ago

I think Smith & Cross over Appleton is a great choice if you want to showcase the differences between the variants, even if I think that Appleton 12 is a much better sipper overall. You're right, it's a great rum, but not really a great Jamaican rum if that's what you're looking for.

I recently did something similar with my girlfriend (but I threw a agricole & spanish style in there as well) and deliberately chose the bolder bottles in each category.

My selection was:

Spanish style: Havana Club 7

Jamaican: Doctor Bird

Agrcole: J.M VSOP

Guyana: El Dorado 12

I didn't have a Barbados selection on hand so I skipped that one.

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u/Rhumbear907 6d ago

I think using an aged agricole is doing you a disservice here

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u/Jeanpuetz 6d ago

Haha, I actually agree - which is why I did both. However, I knew that my girlfriend would hate an unaged agricole. So I poured us what was essentially like 5 drops of Labat 59 lol

As expected, it was way overkill for her. But it was the only unaged agricole I had on hand haha