When it comes to trying something new, especially a spirit like rum, the worst thing you can do is walk into your local liquor store and grab the first bottle that looks appealing. Sure, the flashy label might draw you in and it could even be good but… also maybe not. When getting into a spirit like rum, it’s best to do your homework before you simply dive right in.
Your wallet will thank you.
Nick Jackon, head bartender at The Rum House in New York City has a specific brand he directs novice rum drinkers to. “Any of The Real McCoy Rum range is usually what I go to for those new to the category,” he says. “The Real McCoy is an honest brand that does not add anything to their rums, no sugar or color added. A lot of people have had lower quality rum with too much sugar or flavor added to it and come away thinking they don’t like all rum.”
We asked a handful of well-known bartenders and beverage managers to tell us their picks for the best rums for beginners. Keep scrolling to see all of their picks.
Appleton Estate 12-Year Rare Casks
Ena Kitanovikj, bartender at La Grande Boucherie in New York City
ABV: 43%
Average Price: $40
The Rum:
Appleton Estate 12-Year Rare Casks Jamaican Rum is a great choice for beginners. it is a smooth, great-tasting, high-quality rum without any added sugars, flavorings, or adulterants.
Tasting Notes:
It is rich and silky. This sipper entices with caramel and vanilla aromas. The palate opens with deep toffee and caramel and a drying dose of oak, then the finish dazzles with spice: cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, and black pepper.
Bacardi Reserva Ocho
Federico Doldi, food & beverage director at Gansevoort Meatpacking in New York City
ABV: 40%
Average Price: $30
The Rum:
The best rum for someone who is just approaching this liquor is Bacardi Reserva Ocho. This sweet and spiced rum is made from a special selection of barrel-aged reserve rums and aged for a minimum of eight years.
Tasting Notes:
This long aging process gives this rum a refined flavor with notes of prune, apricot, nutmeg, and vanilla. It’s nice and smooth.
Plantation 3 Stars
Tracy Javier, lead mixologist at VUE Rooftop at Hotel Washington
ABV: 41.2%
Average Price: $20
The Rum:
Plantation 3 Stars is an amazing rum for those trying to break into the spirit. Honestly, a few expressions from Plantation rum will sway a novice to the Caribbean sweet spirit but for a starter rum, this one will do it. Plantation 3 Stars is a blend of the region’s three primary countries: Barbados, Trinidad, and Jamaica.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, you get a bit of brown sugar, subtle coffee beans, and baking spices. Taste-wise, it is light-bodied and creamy. You get a little bit of sarsaparilla and egg cream finishing off a bit grassy. It’s smooth and easy.
Diplomatico Mantuano
Chris Cutjapan, general manager of Carbon Beach Club Restaurant in Malibu, California
ABV: 40%
Average Price: $26
The Rum:
Diplomatico Mantuano is a great choice for rum beginners. This complex, blended rum is well-known for its rich, sippable flavor profile. It’s a balanced rum with a dryer finish.
Tasting Notes:
Some rums can be aggressive, but not this one, which is good for someone starting their rum journey. Subtle notes of dried fruit, caramel, and vanilla.
Equiano Light
Richie Barrow, general manager of food and beverage at Tribe Hotels Group in Nairobi, Kenya
ABV: 43%
Average Price: $39
The Rum:
Thinking back to the paint stripper that was labeled as rum that I first drank with my brother many years ago, I almost feel obliged to share advice I would have loved to have been given: Equiano Light. It makes for a very approachable and light-drinking rum that is a great gateway to more complicated rums.
Tasting Notes:
Bridging two continents, this rum brand uses barrel-aged molasses rum from the Caribbean fused with fresh sugarcane juice from Africa. You’ll find notable aromas of vanilla, dried oak, and tropical fruits, as well as flavors of apples, pears, vanilla, and sugarcane.
The Real McCoy 12-Year
Nick Jackon, head bartender at The Rum House in New York City
ABV: 46%
Average Price: $55
The Rum:
I would start with The Real McCoy 5 Year or just go straight to The Real McCoy 12 Year if sipping on it neat. Made at the ‘very well known in the rum world’ Foursquare Distillery in Barbados, it is very approachable and surprises a lot of people with its premium, mature, and complex nature converting most people to liking rum again.
Tasting Notes:
With a palate that highlights the 12 years aged in ex-bourbon casks like vanilla, caramel, dark chocolate, and other baking spices complemented with slight orange zest and peppery spice notes.
Ron del Barrilito Two Stars
Jose R Rodriguez, general manager at COA at Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Dorado Beach, Puerto Rico
ABV: 43%
Average Price: $30
The Rum:
Crafted by hand with the same methods since 1880, Ron del Barrilito Two Stars is a younger rum suited for everyday drinking and use in cocktails while being accessible to those new to the spirit.
Tasting Notes:
It has a light-medium body, and caramelized aromas of plums, almonds, apricot, and vanilla, along with subtle smoky, oaky notes.
Foursquare Exceptional Cask 2009
Sean Yeats, bartender at Porco Lounge and Tiki Room in Cleveland
ABV: 60%
Average Price: $84
The Rum:
Anything Foursquare that’s aged. A great choice is Foursquare Exceptional Cask 2009. Barbados rum is essentially the epitome of what rum is in many ways and sits right in the center between the extremes of things like Clairin/Clement, Hampden, and aged Don Q. It takes some of those elements without being too much in any direction, a perfect balance in many ways.
Tasting Notes:
It keeps a lot of that oak and vanilla softness on the palate that bourbon drinkers love while also bringing forward that signature burnt caramel and spices that rum is known for.
Plantation Stiggins Fancy Pineapple Rum
Alex Barbatsis, bar director at The Whistler in Chicago
ABV: 40%
Average Price: $30
The Rum:
A great rum to start with is Plantation Stiggins Fancy Pineapple Rum. It’s a rum blend that’s been infused and distilled with pineapple. If that’s not a good way to get started in the rum world, I don’t know what is.
Tasting Notes:
It’s soft, sweet, and fruity and the perfect rum for beginners since it has amazing depth, plenty of flavors, and is very approachable. It’s also not very expensive if you’re looking to build up a back bar.
Ron Zacapa No. 23 Centenario
Phil Castello, owner and bartender at The Side Lot in Chicago
ABV: 40%
Average Price: $40
The Rum:
Ron Zacapa No. 23 Centenario is a great choice for beginners. This Guatemalan-made expression is a blend of rums between six and 23 years old, matured using the solera system in barrels that previously held wine as well as ex-bourbon barrels.
Tasting Notes:
Zacapa No 23. Loads of flavor on its own but add a little splash of water or a chip of ice and it pops. It’s filled with flavors like apricots, oaky wood, tobacco, vanilla beans, and light spices.