The 14 Best Rums to Drink Right Now, From Sophisticated Sippers to Cocktail Mixers

Best Overall Rum: Appleton 21 Year Old

Jamaica is known for its funky, powerful, high-ester pot still rums, but it’s also known for Appleton, one of the world’s best known rum brands, which celebrates its 275th anniversary in 2024. Appleton is not a stereotypical Jamaican funk monster—rather, it’s pure elegance. Appleton “tops off” its rums, consolidating barrels from the same batch as liquid evaporates in the tropical heat, so the finished product isn’t overly oaky even after decades of aging. The proof is in the drinking, a near-perfect mélange of brown sugar, baking spices, orange peel, a touch of rancio, and enough dry oak to balance everything out. Expertly crafted by legendary master blender Joy Spence, and bottled at 43 percent ABV, this may not be for thrill seekers, but it’s an undeniably great rum that can convert whiskey fans and bring a smile to the face of any rum connoisseur.

Buy Now on ReserveBar: $188

Best White Rum: Wray & Nephew Overproof

Most “light” or “white” rums are actually aged and then the color is filtered out. Wray & Nephew, on the other hand, has never seen the inside of a barrel. This is the unofficial national spirit of Jamaica and with good reason. At 126 proof and lacking barrel aging, it shouldn’t be a great sipper, but ask any of the millions of satisfied customers who’ve enjoyed it with a couple of ice cubes and a twist of lime to make a sweltering tropical day a little more bearable. Dry grassiness gives way to sweet notes of vanilla, coconut, banana, and molasses, with just a hint of vegetal funk. The flavor and its high proof make it a marvelous mixer, too. Use it in a Daiquiri, sub it out for gin in a Kingston Negroni, put it in a punch, or drink it the way Jamaicans do, with grapefruit soda (“Wray & Ting”).

Buy Now on Total Wine: $24

Best Spiced Rum: Chairman’s Reserve Spiced Rum

The only “spice” evident in most spiced rums is vanilla, which can come from vanilla beans or artificial sources, as well as copious amounts of added sugar. The rum used can also be bottom-shelf stuff. Chairman’s Reserve, from St. Lucia, stands out from the pack because it’s the same blend of pot and column still rums that makes up its flagship expression, infused with natural ingredients—namely Bois Bandé, a locally sourced tree bark that is supposedly an aphrodisiac, along with other fruits and spices. Cinnamon and clove come to the fore here along with citrus, making the rare spiced rum that actually lives up to the name. Try it over ice with a twist of orange peel.

Buy Now on Curiada: $34

Best Flavored Rum: Arhumatic Passiflora Eduli

The knock on most flavored rums is that they taste artificial, like a food scientist’s idea of a specific flavor rather than the flavor itself. You won’t find that problem with Arhumatic’s flavored expressions because you can literally see what goes into them. It starts out with rhum agricole from Guadeloupe and then infuse it with various fruits and herbs—in this case passion fruit and vanilla—and cane sugar syrup. Bottled at 29 percent ABV, the color and the flavor come entirely from the infused ingredients. And since it’s not strained you can actually see the pulp and the seeds in the bottle. It tastes about as good as it sounds and while it’s a delight in cocktails, a more unadulterated approach—in a highball with soda or on the rocks—is even better.

Buy Now on Total Wine: $59

Best World Rum: Holmes Cay Réunion Island Grand Arôme

The French islands are best known as the place (or places) where rhum agricole is made. But on Réunion—the most far-flung of the lot, a small island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar—almost all the rum made there is from molasses, not cane juice. The rum most prized by devotees is grand arôme, which is generally described as the French equivalent of funky, high-ester Jamaican pot still rum. It’s made at Réunion’s Savanna distillery, and until recently it was all but impossible to find in the States. That’s where Holmes Cay comes in. It was founded in 2019 by two hardcore rum fans with the intent of importing top-notch, hard-to-find rums from around the world and bottling them totally unadulterated. This un-aged beauty—bottled at 57.5 percent ABV—is a wild, pungent, overripe tropical fruit-and-vegetable mélange that’s the quintessential example of the (quite small) category.

Buy Now on Curiada: $57

Best Splurge Rum: Black Tot Last Consignment

Rum with a naval history chaser, this is the actual rum rationed out to British seamen in the Royal Navy until 1970, when the practice was sadly abolished. This is a unique blend, consisting of—we think—Guyanese and Trinidadian rums, with smaller amounts from Barbados and Australia, vatted together in industrial-sized quantities for a couple of years and then “bottled” in barrels or stone flagons. Since the vats were never emptied completely, there’s some pretty old rum in the blend, of unknown provenance. But the important thing is that it tastes delicious—not exactly refined, but strong and powerful, with dark chocolate, molasses, caramel and a meatiness particular to Guyanese rum. It’s not cheap, but it’s a small miracle that it still exists at all and is a perfect splurge for a special occasion—you can even get your bottle engraved.

Buy Now on Luekens: $1,050

Best Aged Agricole Rum: Rhum J.M Terroir Volcanique

The venerable Martinique brand’s liquid homage to its soil—the Fonds-Préville distillery where it’s made is situated on the slopes of a volcano—is actually more of a tribute to its cooperage. The rum, distilled from fresh cane juice, is aged for three years in new American oak barrels with, as the brand describes it, “two unique custom heavy toasts charred in the distillery’s own small cooperage.” One of them is a heavy “alligator char,” known as Char No. 4 by bourbon fans. The combo is intended to recreate the distillery’s microclimate, down to the smoke of the volcano. Whether or not the finished product transports you to Mount Pelée, it’s a very enjoyable rum, with the fruitiness of a young cognac tempered by charred oak and, yes, a wisp or two of smoke. Bottled at 43 percent ABV, it works beautifully both as a sipper and a mixer.

Buy Now on Del Mesa: $48

Best Un-Aged Agricole Rum: Clairin Sajous

Haiti’s un-aged agricole-style rums are likely the closest we’ll come to knowing what rum tasted like 200 years ago. There are literally hundreds of distillers making rum in minuscule batches, using locally sourced sugarcane, spontaneous fermentation with wild yeast, and distillation in homemade pot stills. And until the last decade or so, they were barely known outside Haiti. That is, until Luca Gargano of La Maison & Velier toured Haiti and sampled hundreds of clairins, tapping a few favorites to ramp up production enough to bring them to a wider market. You won’t find a clairin that’s not worth trying, but Sajous, named for distiller Michel Sajous, is a delight, with grassy, herbaceous notes accompanied by an almost savory brininess, along with citrus and mineral notes. Not for everyone, but everyone should try it at least once.

Buy Now on Bounty Hunter Wine & Spirits: $50

Best Rum Under $50: Smith & Cross Pure Pot Still

Most of the rums on the cheaper end of the spectrum are spiced concoctions or weak, 80-proof bottlings that often taste closer to vodka than rum. This is a glorious exception. A blend of rums from several different (mostly unnamed) distilleries, this 114-proof behemoth is a great starting point for Jamaican pot still rum in all its funky, vegetal, earthy glory—think of it as the rum equivalent of smoky and peaty Islay whiskies. Connoisseurs will wax rhapsodic about other pot still expressions from Jamaica, but there are no better bargains in the category, and this has the added advantage of being fairly easy to find.

Buy Now on Curiada: $37

Best Overproof Rum: Diamond Reserve 151 Demerara Rum

The Diamond distillery in Guyana is a wild and unique place, with a collection of stills that includes the last operational double wooden pot still anywhere in the world. That still was used, in part, to make this extraordinary rum. These 151 proof rums have generally been used for flambéing or to add some alcoholic whomp to cocktails, but Diamond Reserve adds quite a refined flavor, thanks to one to two years of aging in ex-bourbon barrels and the addition of caramel coloring, which gives it both a dark amber hue and rounds off the sharper boozy edges. Dark chocolate, baking spices and dried berry notes add an extra dimension of flavor to classic tiki cocktails of all stripes.

Buy Now on Wine.com: $28

Best 80-Proof Rum: Goslings Family Reserve Old Rum: Rye Barrel Finish

Proof that proof isn’t everything when it comes to making a flavorful, satisfying rum. Goslings’ classic Black Seal expression is the signature rum for the Dark N’ Stormy cocktail, and the brand itself is indelibly associated with Bermuda. Is it distilled there? Not a drop. Where is it from, exactly? Elsewhere in the Caribbean. We don’t know exactly where, but Goslings does age, blend and bottle it in Bermuda. So what do we know about this variation of their high-end Old Rum expression? The original Old Rum was aged 16 to 19 years in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels. The Rye Barrel Finish is the same rum, with an extra step added. It’s a blend of three batches that were recasked in rye barrels in successive years (2018, 2019, and 2020). The rich and viscous dark chocolate notes of the original are complemented by dark fruit and peppery spice from the rye casks. Does it have sugar and color added post-distillation? Most likely. Is it a delicious sipping rum anyway? Absolutely.

Buy Now on ReserveBar: $92

Best Cask-Finished Rum: Don Q Double Aged Port Cask Finish

Don Q is produced at Destileria Serralles in Puerto Rico, which has been making rum since 1865—it’s the oldest distillery on the island and is still family-owned. Puerto Rican rum is quite light in general, and in this case, that’s where the cask finish is extra beneficial. Aged for five to eight years in ex-bourbon barrels, it’s then matured another three years in ex-European tawny port casks (the brand isn’t specified). Bottled at 40 percent ABV, the port finish gives the rum a more substantial mouthfeel and a nice burst of flavor. Many Port cask-matured spirits can taste overly sweet and jammy, but the fruity notes here are dry and elegant. The finishing was done judiciously in this case, resulting in a beautifully balanced rum that works as a sipper or in cocktails—give it a go in a rum Old Fashioned or perhaps a Corn N’ Oil.

Buy Now on Top Shelf Wine & Spirits: $85

Best White Rum for Cocktails: Probitas White Blended Rum

This is a blend from two of the world’s most acclaimed rum distilleries. Foursquare in Barbados contributes both un-aged Coffey (column) still and two-year-old pot still rums, while Jamaica’s Hampden Estate adds its own un-aged pot distillate. It’s blended and bottled by Foursquare’s master distiller/blender, the legendary Richard Seale. It’s not quite “white” to look at—the aged rum in the blend gives it a pale straw color—but what does it matter with a rum this delicious? Bottled at a substantial 47 percent ABV, it’s loaded with banana, vanilla, coconut, and a little citrus, with light Jamaican funk coming in on the finish. It makes a beautifully complex Daiquiri, performs admirably in pretty much every other cocktail calling for white rum, and even makes a fine sipper, especially on the rocks with a squeeze of lime.

Buy Now on ReserveBar: $45

Best Aged Rum for Cocktails: Planteray (Plantation) Xaymaca Special Drytation

Owner Alexandre Gabriel has been a lightning rod for controversy in the rum world over the years, but he’s been transparent and, for the most part, granular in detail about exactly what goes into his bottles. In Xaymaca’s case, it’s a blend of pot still rums from the Long Pond and Clarendon distilleries in Jamaica, both of which are partially owned by Gabriel. Aged from one to three years in ex-bourbon barrels in the tropical heat of Jamaica, it’s then transported to France for an extra year of maturation in Cognac casks. Unlike many Planteray rums, this one has no sugar added after distillation. Bottled at 43 percent ABV, it’s not a hogo-rich funk bomb along the lines of the more famous Jamaican pot still rums. But it’s big and flavorful, with tropical fruit, light ginger spice, and a light funk. It adds body and dimension to any cocktail, including a Mai Tai—Jamaican rum is a must if you’re going by the specs for the classic version. (In January 2024, Plantation announced an imminent name change to Planteray, so bottles will likely be seen bearing both names for a while.)

Buy Now on ReserveBar: $31

Everything You Need to Know About Rum

What is rum and what are the different styles of rum?

The cliché is that rum is the “wild West” of spirits because there are so few rules regulating how it’s made. To a certain extent, that’s true, although there can be quite stringent rules depending on the country. Regardless of where or how it’s made, rum must be distilled from sugarcane—either the juice extracted from the pressed sugarcane stalks; cane syrup, which is the juice boiled down to remove some of the water; or molasses, a sugarcane by-product. The vast majority of rums are distilled from molasses. Rum can be aged or un-aged, and there’s a seemingly endless variety of flavor profiles to explore.

Why are some rums spelled “rhum”?

Rhum generally refers to rhum agricole, rums distilled from cane juice that are only allowed to be made in authorized areas of the French islands, notably Martinique and Guadeloupe. These rums require an AOC (Appellation d’Origine Controlee) to be designated a rhum agricole. There are many agricole-style rums distilled from cane juice made all over the world, but they lack the AOC designation.

How should you drink rum?

Rum is often thought of as something to put into sugary or frozen cocktails, and of course there are plenty of rums out there that are made for mixing. But a good rum—especially a good aged rum—can be sipped in the same way as a whisky or a Cognac, using the same glassware. Some aged rums can also be subbed out for whiskey in cocktails like Manhattans or Old Fashioneds. Un-aged rums can be more rough-hewn and challenging, but they can also be worthy sippers. That said, the best way to drink rum is… any way you enjoy it. Neat, on the rocks, in a rum & cola or a Daiquiri, there’s no “wrong” way to drink rum, unless you’re pouring it into your nose instead of your mouth.

Why are some rums sweeter than others?

The sweetness of a rum can depend on how it’s distilled and aged. Rum aged in a charred ex-bourbon barrel, for instance, can pick up a lot of flavor from the sugars naturally occurring in the barrel. This can also apply to “light” rums, which are barrel-aged and then filtered to remove the color (and some of the flavor). Other rums, however, namely those produced in Latin America, traditionally have sugar added after distillation, as well as artificial coloring and/or flavoring. There are no rules against this practice in most countries, and artificially sweetened rums are also some of the most popular and widely enjoyed. But if you have a rum with unusually prominent vanilla notes and a viscous mouthfeel, that sweetness may not be natural.

How did we choose the rums on this list?

Several factors went into making this list, including availability—plenty of incredible rums are, sadly, virtually impossible to procure. We also wanted to include a wide array of styles and flavor profiles. But in the end, what mattered most was, do we think each rum is worthy of being called the best in its specific category? Aroma, mouthfeel, flavor profile and finish were all considered in making these choices. Lists like this inevitably provoke discussion and disagreement, and that’s a good thing. But each choice made is one we can stand behind.

Why should you trust us?

Tony Sachs has been writing about rum and other spirits since 2007, visiting distilleries and meeting the people who distill and blend rum to learn the techniques and the stories behind each one. He is a judge for several spirits competitions including the Ultimate Spirits Challenge, and in addition to close to a decade of writing for Robb Report, he’s written for numerous other publications, including Forbes, HuffPost, Whisky Advocate, and Esquire.