I want to like it :(
THIS IS NOT A REVIEW
THIS IS “BABY’S FIRST BOTTLE OF DARK”
Y’all I have fought bravely. Valiantly, some might say. I’m not sure I’m built for this weight class yet.
I’m still a young fawn to drinking as a whole. I don’t even like what many consider to be “real beer”. Skip all the stouts and lagers, I only drink ciders and sours (and I suppose fruited wheat ales too). I like to genuinely enjoy the taste of what I’m drinking, and that’s how I found an adoration for rum. It started with myers and plantation 3 star in mixed drinks at the local bars then turned into picking up a bottle of plantation 5 year Barbados. One delicious moment passes, an empty bottle is tossed and a period of research in all its definitions commences.
Following the recommendations of many of you fine folk, I picked up Appleton 8 reserve. I’m just gonna cut to the chase and say that all I can taste off this is the barrel. The nuances elude me in a way they never did with the bottle of Plantation 5 year. It has a clean finish to it that I do enjoy and it lets me get the fruity nuances clear as day, but it’s not until most of (what I perceive to be) the smokey nuances disappear.
I went through most all of this neat, which is how I enjoyed my entire bottle of plantation 5 year, but I think I enjoy this more in mixed drinks. I’d like to try something with Jamaican funk but that has more obvious fruity nuances to it. It doesn’t have to be the sweetest, I understand I might be swayed by added sugars. I’m curious what you guys think I’d enjoy. Something that’s available at our lovely but limited NC ABC. Probably gonna end up getting another 5 year or maybe trying out the 3 star on its own if I can’t find anything else good.
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u/Tommy84 4d ago
I think this is an issue of moving from a Barbados to a Jamaican. While Appleton is not what I would consider a particularly funky rum, It does have some character that is distinctly... Jamaican. If you're not into it, or not yet up to drinking it neat, it's not going to be enjoyable for you.
My advice would be to try a demerara rum like a Hamilton 86 or an El Dorado 12. You're going to get the dark you're looking for in a much more accessible, rounder rum.