Do Rum flavors and types change by where they are made?
Rum styles vary greatly according to where they are made. Central American producers, for example, generally create light-bodied Rums carefully aged for a light, fruity, and floral style. Medium-bodied blends from Barbados have additional character. Trinidad makes lighter-style Rums, but is known for uniquely spicy blends.
What are the different types of Rum?
Out of all the kinds of Rum produced in the world today, any single bottle generally falls into one of the following categories:
White Rum is clear and has a generally sweet flavor, but that’s about it. These Rums can be aged, but generally for a shorter time than all other Rum types. If aged, they are usually filtered after the aging process is done to remove any color defects and remain clear.
Gold Rum tends to be stronger tasting than White Rums, but not as strong as Dark Rums. They tend to be aged in (white) oak barrels, which transfer a part of the barrel to the color, hence “gold” Rum. Some gold Rums might use coloring instead of aging to give it the gold / page appearance.
Dark Rum is generally aged longer than White Rum and Gold Rum, which takes place in charred barrels. These Rums have more flavor than either White or Gold Rum, and can have hints of spice, molasses, and/or caramel.
Spiced Rum, or flavored Rums, are Rums that have had spices added before the bottling process, where the producer adds fruits, spices, or other ingredients to develop the final product.
Demerara Rum comes from Guyana and uses sugar cane juice rather than molasses. The result is full-bodied, rich Rum named for the Demerara River, along which the cane is grown. Demerara is also a main component of bulk Rums exported to Britain, where they are aged, blended and dosed with caramel to add both color and sweetness. These final products are known as navy blends.
Rhum Agricole is made from sugar cane juice, but this French-inflected spirit is produced in single column stills that yield low-alcohol, light and fruity spirits that are often bottled unaged. The final product can appear to look like white Rum, gold Rum, or dark Rum, but will incorporate different flavors than those final products.
Naval Strength Rum is bottled at 50-59% ABV, and Overproofed Rum is any Rum that is higher than 60% ABV. There’s more history behind how these two types of Rum came about, but their ABV is the main qualifying factor.
What is Cachaca?
Cachaça (kah-SHA-sah) is a Rum-like spirit unique to Brazil, that is distilled from fermented sugar cane juice. It may be aged or unaged and may have sugar added. When muddled with lime juice and sugar, Cachaça makes the quintessential Brazilian cocktail, the Caipirinha. Producing Rum in a continuous distillation process allows for the ability to make light-bodied to almost neutral Rums. Producers age light Rums for a short amount of time, usually in used oak barrels that once contained Bourbon or Cognac.
What are the most popular Rum drinks?
Some of the most popular Rum cocktails around the world include the following recipes:
What are the most popular Rum brands?
Some of the most popular Rum brands include Bacardi, Malibu, and Captain Morgan.
Want to learn more?
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