Yeah. Sorry I closed it 2 months ago. It basically became something I didn’t want it to be. Too much talk about expensive Rums, not enough focus on UK Rum and all Rum under £50/$60…or least not many accepting that. Newbies were simply put off by the comments.
The next Rum I will buy is the Plantation 5yr. My Liquor store is always out of it. $26 for a 750 ml here. You mentioned Eldo12.Thats my go to Rum,it makes a "Banging " Rum and Coke.$35.49 for a 750 ml here. I know its over 30 quid in the Uk.Great review as always Steve.
I almost never sip rum aside from when I first try a new bottle. But regarding your choices, the Plantation 5yr is an EXCELLENT entry point for new rum drinkers. I've personally converted several people over to the cult of rum by having them try that rum, it is very approachable. And I'm ngl, I personally prefer it ALMOST across the board to the doorly's 5 in cocktails that would call for a bajan rum (I prefer the fruity character of the plantation over the more barrel focused notes of the doorly's). Doorly's 8/12 or XO is a different story however, the doorly's 8/12 are a great entry for whiskey/whisky people and here in the US they're pretty cheap. edit: appleton 8 is an absolute banger as well, I should have mentioned it in my original post. I feel that it's nearly as approachable as the plantation and is another great entry point into rum for new rum drinkers. If you can spring for the 12yr though, do it.
I live in PA where the liquor selection is very limited, but I often work in KS where it's more open. I've still never seen a single Doorlys rum and I want to try it so bad!
My favorite for now is between the Plantation 5 yr. & Bacardi Ocho which is only $26 here in the states. Thanks for all your videos and for explaining why you choose what you choose. 👍👍
Just enjoying my first bottle of Appleton Estate 8. Never had Jamaican rum before either. You certainly get what you pay for with this, smooth full of flavour taste. Mixing with an ice cube and Pepsi. Lovely notes of honey, banana and oak. Strong too, certainly start feeling the kick sooner than other rums. 👍🏼
I just started into Rum recently. I only ever sipped with a cigar on occasion. I was a Scotch drinker only for a long time. I love Brugal extra dry to sip or make long drinks. Of course I love Captain Private Stock with dinner on ice. I like Don Q 7 yr. I like the Real McCoy 5yr. I don't like Pussers 82 or El Dorado 5 neat because they taste like licorice syrup to me? Ok with coke. Those are all I've tried. I drink Doorlys 12 with a cigar when I visit a friend...love it.
I drink whisky. But have recently dove into some rum. Zero knowledge on it so, I have a bottle of Zaya Gran Reserva that I found quite nice. But I have no idea what I'm looking for. Lol
I can get R.L Seales 10 year and Doorlys 12 year for $30 each over here in the US, I also like Diplimatico Planas and Denizen 3 year for white sipping rums. For $40 Flor De Cana 12 and El Dorado 12 are my go to.
Hey Steve, thanks for this video. I haven't yet tried the Santiago yet as I get a bit hung up on Cuban rums for some reason! I just can't get past my dislike for havana club but I will revisit it at some point as my pallette is definitely changing. Anyhow, my picks for 30 quid or less sippers would be: flor de cana 12 (got some for £23 a bottle on amazon a couple of weeks ago, what an incredible rum at a steal of a price!) Ron abuelo 12 (my online cigar shop was doing this for £30 a bottle up until a few weeks ago, complete with a free copita!!!) What a nice rum that is and a good choice for anyone making that switch from spiced to sipper. I too am a fan of the Appleton 8 but it's not for everyone. I was also lucky enough to be gifted a bottle of santa teresa anejo, great rum but I'm not sure on its price point, it makes me want to splurge the cash on a bottle of 1796!! Should I? I must confess that I have a narrow, possibly blinkered view on white rum. The last bottle I had was wray and nephew overproof, probably about 20years ago. I like many, believe that white rum is a bit girly and purely for mixing. However, I'll try to keep an open mind. All the best 👍
I can’t remember what I paid for the ones I have as sippers but here are mine: Plantation 5 yr Real McCoy 5 yr Bacardi 8 yr Appleton Estate Signature I do have a Captain Morgan Private stock (stop making that face at me) but I hadn’t tried it yet. I just liked the look of the bottle 🤷♂️ Can’t find the doorlys in my area and gonna get some El Dorado 12 next trip. Thanks for the video Steve. 👍👍
Sadly AUS$50 will not get you much down here for sipping, except for the Bacardi and Havana basics and only if they are on special. $50 is basically below the minimum starter retail price. Spirits are taxed way too much here in Oz. I checked the prices here for those 5 bottles and they range between $70 and $84 Aussie.
I’m stuck on Kracken, bumbu, chairman’s reserve , red leg! I tried to venture out to plantation 5 and El dorado 12 and found them harsh for some reason
Basically, (and i don't mean this funny) But Kraken and Bumbu and RedLeg are heavily Sweetened Spiced Rums. Plantation 5 and ED12 are Rums with only a tiny bit of Sugar, so you'll be translating the Harshness as "Not as Sweet". Sugar masks the taste.
Here in Canada selection is good but not great. I started with Mt. Gay then preferred Guyanese rums before becoming enamored with Wray over proof. The game changer was Kingston 62. Both gold and white are great value for the prices they ask.
Just so you understand, Bumbu is a Spiced Rum. It’s massively sweetended up with the likes of Vanilla etc. so essentially a Posher Captain Morgan’s. Nothing wrong with that, but just wanted you to be aware that it’ll be a lot sweeter than Rum.
Yeah. Not really a Dark Rum. It’s spiced. But it’s a fantastic spiced rum. Dark Rums, you wanna look at stuff like Worthy 109. For worldwide availability, I think that’s top of the pops over Goslings, Myers, Pussers etc.
Wow... bummer. My regular liquor store in Chicago, Binny's, which is huge and has 45 locations and advertises 30,000+ products, has none of those. It has 1 version each of 3 of those brands but not your selections. We can't get Cuban rum in the US.
How? I go to the binnys in Shorewood and naperville and both of them carry extremely wide varieties of Appleton and plantation at least, as well as El dorado. I wonder if selections are dependant on the actual store and not the same for every location. Try using their website search feature and find some at stores around you that may be a tad further.
I think that finding sipping rums below 30 is quiet hard. Stuff like the Abuelo might be great for beginners, but I regret buying more than 1 sweet rum at the beginning on my journey since they are now just sitting on the shelf. But If you‘d switch the Plantation with the Doorly’s your top 5 are great picks! The Worthy Park Select was a Great sub 30 surprise for me and would make it to my top 5.
Some other great, cheap and beginner friendly rums below 30€ in Germany would be the classic Chairman’s, FdC 7 and 12, Ron Esclavo Gran Reserva, Plantation O.F.T.D., Ron Prohibido 12, Santiago de Cuba 8, Malteco 10 and 15. And if you are lucky you can get the Mount Gay Black Barrel (30,50€ atm) as well. In a special offer maybe even the Black Tot. The last two would be my obvious favorites.
Ha. See I like your view, but it’s from a really experienced drinker. Funding Sipping Rums under £30 is actually very very easy. There’s tonnes. Granted you may grow out of them. But I could’ve listed 100 easily. And I mean decent sippers too. Not Mount Gay Eclipses or Appleton Signatures.
Can I throw Doorly's corporate cousin Real McCoy into the mix on this? Both the 3 and 5 year old expressions all make the $30 cutoff here in the States.
Taste is definitely subjective... to an extent. But is it TOTALLY subjective? I mean I think everyone would agree that candy tastes sweet and habanero peppers are hot/spicy, know what I mean?
See normally I’d agree with you. But my own Membership community is evidence of that. I have people who have such adverse palates that some add Sugar to Jam because they don’t find the Jam Sweet. And I have a friend who would argue that a Habanero is Mild at best. I also have someone who has a Super Palate and can Pick Coconut in a Rum where another 25 wouldn’t. So yeah, in this day and age, where people have such a diverse range of palates, Yeah it’s totally subjective. Not perhaps to everyone. But to a lot of people.
@@StevetheBarmanUK hey thanks for the reply! I am only just seeing this now. What I'm wondering is if your mate sees habanero as mild then what does he consider to be hot? 😶
Here in the US: -if you like whiskey/whisky: el dorado 12 can be found for around $30-$35USD, worth every penny. Doorly's 8/12 is another excellent (arguably better) choice, doorly's 12 is around $30USD...just buy it. -if the person has never really sipped any spirit neat: plantation 5 yr is around $23-$28USD where I live and is VERY approachable. -if you want to try mixing: pick any of the above, but bacardi 8yr is honestly delicious in a rum old fashioned(and neat) and is around $30. Appleton 8/12 are very good in a mai tai as well as neat. Appleton 12 BARELY squeaks under the 30GBP mark here in the US where I am(~$33USD). Plantation Xaymaca($23USD) makes a banging mai tai all on it's own(better than appleton IMO, no flame plz), and sips...reasonably well(6/10), if you like jamaican funk, but mixes like a champion, appleton is much better to sip IMO. --Honorable mention goes to doorly's XO. I think it's quite delicious. Perfectly good sipper, and excellent as a mixer as well.
When he mentioned the Plantation 5, he said sugar is added. I'm a type 1 diabetic so that concerns me. Is the sugar distilled out so it's still 0 carb?
@@dakotatheplumber1287 In plantation 5, the spirit has sugar added AFTER distillation, so it isn't 0 carb. Their website claims 16grams/Liter of sugar added after distillation. Not a lot, but definitely enough to mess with your blood sugar, which alcohol will already do.
📔 JOIN MY FREE DISCORD RUM COMMUNITY and DOWNLOAD MY FREEBIES; stevethebarman.com/hello 📔
Hi Steve, I just tried joining the discord community and it says it’s closed?
Yeah. Sorry I closed it 2 months ago. It basically became something I didn’t want it to be. Too much talk about expensive Rums, not enough focus on UK Rum and all Rum under £50/$60…or least not many accepting that. Newbies were simply put off by the comments.
The next Rum I will buy is the Plantation 5yr. My Liquor store is always out of it. $26 for a 750 ml here. You mentioned Eldo12.Thats my go to Rum,it makes a "Banging " Rum and Coke.$35.49 for a 750 ml here. I know its over 30 quid in the Uk.Great review as always Steve.
So annoyed ED12 is so cheap your way!!
I almost never sip rum aside from when I first try a new bottle. But regarding your choices, the Plantation 5yr is an EXCELLENT entry point for new rum drinkers. I've personally converted several people over to the cult of rum by having them try that rum, it is very approachable. And I'm ngl, I personally prefer it ALMOST across the board to the doorly's 5 in cocktails that would call for a bajan rum (I prefer the fruity character of the plantation over the more barrel focused notes of the doorly's). Doorly's 8/12 or XO is a different story however, the doorly's 8/12 are a great entry for whiskey/whisky people and here in the US they're pretty cheap.
edit: appleton 8 is an absolute banger as well, I should have mentioned it in my original post. I feel that it's nearly as approachable as the plantation and is another great entry point into rum for new rum drinkers. If you can spring for the 12yr though, do it.
A8 = BANGER. So so Good for the £$€
I live in PA where the liquor selection is very limited, but I often work in KS where it's more open. I've still never seen a single Doorlys rum and I want to try it so bad!
You might have figured this out already but it's exclusive to Total Wine and Spirits. The XO is under $20 and the 12 is under $30.
@@77Brainfreeze hahaha yes i have. i got the xo and the 12 on a road trip i went on
My favorite for now is between the Plantation 5 yr. & Bacardi Ocho which is only $26 here in the states. Thanks for all your videos and for explaining why you choose what you choose. 👍👍
Just enjoying my first bottle of Appleton Estate 8. Never had Jamaican rum before either. You certainly get what you pay for with this, smooth full of flavour taste. Mixing with an ice cube and Pepsi. Lovely notes of honey, banana and oak. Strong too, certainly start feeling the kick sooner than other rums. 👍🏼
Glad you're enjoying it! It's a great Rum.
Please use Coca Cola.
I just started into Rum recently. I only ever sipped with a cigar on occasion. I was a Scotch drinker only for a long time. I love Brugal extra dry to sip or make long drinks. Of course I love Captain Private Stock with dinner on ice. I like Don Q 7 yr. I like the Real McCoy 5yr. I don't like Pussers 82 or El Dorado 5 neat because they taste like licorice syrup to me? Ok with coke. Those are all I've tried. I drink Doorlys 12 with a cigar when I visit a friend...love it.
Doorlys 12 is great. But I also love the Brugals. Great Brand that.
I drink whisky. But have recently dove into some rum. Zero knowledge on it so, I have a bottle of Zaya Gran Reserva that I found quite nice. But I have no idea what I'm looking for. Lol
I can get R.L Seales 10 year and Doorlys 12 year for $30 each over here in the US, I also like Diplimatico Planas and Denizen 3 year for white sipping rums. For $40 Flor De Cana 12 and El Dorado 12 are my go to.
Hey Steve, thanks for this video. I haven't yet tried the Santiago yet as I get a bit hung up on Cuban rums for some reason! I just can't get past my dislike for havana club but I will revisit it at some point as my pallette is definitely changing. Anyhow, my picks for 30 quid or less sippers would be: flor de cana 12 (got some for £23 a bottle on amazon a couple of weeks ago, what an incredible rum at a steal of a price!) Ron abuelo 12 (my online cigar shop was doing this for £30 a bottle up until a few weeks ago, complete with a free copita!!!) What a nice rum that is and a good choice for anyone making that switch from spiced to sipper. I too am a fan of the Appleton 8 but it's not for everyone. I was also lucky enough to be gifted a bottle of santa teresa anejo, great rum but I'm not sure on its price point, it makes me want to splurge the cash on a bottle of 1796!! Should I? I must confess that I have a narrow, possibly blinkered view on white rum. The last bottle I had was wray and nephew overproof, probably about 20years ago. I like many, believe that white rum is a bit girly and purely for mixing. However, I'll try to keep an open mind. All the best 👍
You’re missing out. Cuba Ron also make some fantastic Rums other than Havana.
I like the doorly’s
I drink it often.
I can’t remember what I paid for the ones I have as sippers but here are mine:
Plantation 5 yr
Real McCoy 5 yr
Bacardi 8 yr
Appleton Estate Signature
I do have a Captain Morgan Private stock (stop making that face at me) but I hadn’t tried it yet. I just liked the look of the bottle 🤷♂️
Can’t find the doorlys in my area and gonna get some El Dorado 12 next trip. Thanks for the video Steve. 👍👍
Hahaha. Captain Morgs… 🙈🙈😂😂😂. Nah messing. Not tried it, but see the love it gets. It sounds pretty decent.
Sadly AUS$50 will not get you much down here for sipping, except for the Bacardi and Havana basics and only if they are on special. $50 is basically below the minimum starter retail price. Spirits are taxed way too much here in Oz.
I checked the prices here for those 5 bottles and they range between $70 and $84 Aussie.
Wow. We go from one extreme to the other. US is half our prices in the UK. And Aus are double the UK. It’s crazy.
great info Steve, I loving the Flor de Caña 12 at the mo' (got it for £27)
Bargain 👍
I’m stuck on Kracken, bumbu, chairman’s reserve , red leg! I tried to venture out to plantation 5 and El dorado 12 and found them harsh for some reason
Basically, (and i don't mean this funny) But Kraken and Bumbu and RedLeg are heavily Sweetened Spiced Rums. Plantation 5 and ED12 are Rums with only a tiny bit of Sugar, so you'll be translating the Harshness as "Not as Sweet". Sugar masks the taste.
@@StevetheBarmanUK I understand, I guess just trying proper rums I might acquire the taste for it
Here in Canada selection is good but not great. I started with Mt. Gay then preferred Guyanese rums before becoming enamored with Wray over proof. The game changer was Kingston 62. Both gold and white are great value for the prices they ask.
Agree with that. Although (and I think you can get them) the Rum Bars are imo tastier than Kingstons. But Kingstons are Solid cheap Rums.
Please try Bumbu, Barbados Rum, delicious. $50.00 U.S.
Just so you understand, Bumbu is a Spiced Rum. It’s massively sweetended up with the likes of Vanilla etc. so essentially a Posher Captain Morgan’s. Nothing wrong with that, but just wanted you to be aware that it’ll be a lot sweeter than Rum.
How about Rhum Barbancourt 8 yr? One of my good value nice sippers.
Was recently at the Barbancourt launch for the UK. November. We’ve only just got them here.
I just came across plantation 75% original dark. in a local off licence.
it's discontinued but they still have a few bottles,
have you tried it?
Yup. Decent. Just be aware that’s obviously been in the bottle close to 10 years.
At the moment the only dark rum under 35€ I have is Chairman's Reserved Spiced at 28€. Ι like it but it's not for everyday.
Yeah. Not really a Dark Rum. It’s spiced. But it’s a fantastic spiced rum. Dark Rums, you wanna look at stuff like Worthy 109. For worldwide availability, I think that’s top of the pops over Goslings, Myers, Pussers etc.
And The pampero
Mate, you need to make am infinity bottle with the dregs, would be legendary
Ha, When you catch up to newer videos, you'll see I have over 5 litres of the stuff! And it IS Legendary. I call it my Infinity Tiki Blend!
As close to Ambrosia mentioned by the Ancient Greeks as you will get. I bet sniffing it is enough to glaze over
Wow... bummer. My regular liquor store in Chicago, Binny's, which is huge and has 45 locations and advertises 30,000+ products, has none of those. It has 1 version each of 3 of those brands but not your selections. We can't get Cuban rum in the US.
How? I go to the binnys in Shorewood and naperville and both of them carry extremely wide varieties of Appleton and plantation at least, as well as El dorado. I wonder if selections are dependant on the actual store and not the same for every location. Try using their website search feature and find some at stores around you that may be a tad further.
Try Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum
We can’t it in the UK unfortunately. It’s US only.
@@StevetheBarmanUK Okay thanks for the reply
😊
I think that finding sipping rums below 30 is quiet hard. Stuff like the Abuelo might be great for beginners, but I regret buying more than 1 sweet rum at the beginning on my journey since they are now just sitting on the shelf. But If you‘d switch the Plantation with the Doorly’s your top 5 are great picks!
The Worthy Park Select was a Great sub 30 surprise for me and would make it to my top 5.
Some other great, cheap and beginner friendly rums below 30€ in Germany would be the classic Chairman’s, FdC 7 and 12, Ron Esclavo Gran Reserva, Plantation O.F.T.D., Ron Prohibido 12, Santiago de Cuba 8, Malteco 10 and 15. And if you are lucky you can get the Mount Gay Black Barrel (30,50€ atm) as well. In a special offer maybe even the Black Tot. The last two would be my obvious favorites.
@@henryl.4999
in ireland the price would nearly be twice what you can get if for....
Ha. See I like your view, but it’s from a really experienced drinker. Funding Sipping Rums under £30 is actually very very easy. There’s tonnes. Granted you may grow out of them. But I could’ve listed 100 easily. And I mean decent sippers too. Not Mount Gay Eclipses or Appleton Signatures.
Can I throw Doorly's corporate cousin Real McCoy into the mix on this? Both the 3 and 5 year old expressions all make the $30 cutoff here in the States.
You certainly can. But not UK. 2x the price on them, easily.
Taste is definitely subjective... to an extent. But is it TOTALLY subjective? I mean I think everyone would agree that candy tastes sweet and habanero peppers are hot/spicy, know what I mean?
See normally I’d agree with you. But my own Membership community is evidence of that. I have people who have such adverse palates that some add Sugar to Jam because they don’t find the Jam Sweet. And I have a friend who would argue that a Habanero is Mild at best. I also have someone who has a Super Palate and can Pick Coconut in a Rum where another 25 wouldn’t. So yeah, in this day and age, where people have such a diverse range of palates, Yeah it’s totally subjective. Not perhaps to everyone. But to a lot of people.
@@StevetheBarmanUK hey thanks for the reply! I am only just seeing this now. What I'm wondering is if your mate sees habanero as mild then what does he consider to be hot? 😶
Damn. This is an expensive video.
Here in the US:
-if you like whiskey/whisky: el dorado 12 can be found for around $30-$35USD, worth every penny. Doorly's 8/12 is another excellent (arguably better) choice, doorly's 12 is around $30USD...just buy it.
-if the person has never really sipped any spirit neat: plantation 5 yr is around $23-$28USD where I live and is VERY approachable.
-if you want to try mixing: pick any of the above, but bacardi 8yr is honestly delicious in a rum old fashioned(and neat) and is around $30. Appleton 8/12 are very good in a mai tai as well as neat. Appleton 12 BARELY squeaks under the 30GBP mark here in the US where I am(~$33USD). Plantation Xaymaca($23USD) makes a banging mai tai all on it's own(better than appleton IMO, no flame plz), and sips...reasonably well(6/10), if you like jamaican funk, but mixes like a champion, appleton is much better to sip IMO.
--Honorable mention goes to doorly's XO. I think it's quite delicious. Perfectly good sipper, and excellent as a mixer as well.
Your Prices are soooo cheap!! 🙈😂 Great shouts though.
When he mentioned the Plantation 5, he said sugar is added. I'm a type 1 diabetic so that concerns me. Is the sugar distilled out so it's still 0 carb?
@@dakotatheplumber1287 In plantation 5, the spirit has sugar added AFTER distillation, so it isn't 0 carb. Their website claims 16grams/Liter of sugar added after distillation. Not a lot, but definitely enough to mess with your blood sugar, which alcohol will already do.
@@brooksington4696 16 grams over a liter wouldn't throw me for too big of loop. Thanks so much for the info.