It’s hard to believe we’re celebrating
five years of the landmark Rum Awards, Rum Journal’s annual celebration of the
best in rum around the Caribbean and the world. A lot has changed in the rum
world since then, with awareness of the diversity and quality of rum at an
all-time high and showing no signs of decline.
Rum-makers continue to innovate, as new distilleries emerge and existing
ones get more creative, the latter nowhere clearer than Martinique, the
Caribbean’s most innovative rum production hub.
This year’s Rum Awards, our Fifth Edition,
celebrate our favorites in 12 categories, from the Rum and Rhum Agricole of the
Year to the Rum Bar of the Year, along with a special new category. After
tasting almost 300 rums, here are the 2016 Rum Awards, or, as some like to call
them, the Rummys.
Congratulations to all the winners.
Rum
of the Year: Mount Gay 1703
The
rum world continues to expand, but this year the Rum of the Year award heads to
one of its birthplaces: Barbados. Mount Gay has taken its legendary rum to a
new level in the last few years, trying out new formulas, unveiling new limited
editions and taking its existing blends to another level. And that’s precisely
what happened with its halo 1703 rum, which is drinking better than ever
before. This is a simply exquisite rum, with the robustness one expects from
Mount Gay but an exacting, almost impossible smoothness and a remarkably
delicate finish.
Runners
up: Ron Santiago de Cuba 11 años (Cuba), Ron Zafra Master
Series
30 Años(Panama)
Rhum
Agricole of the Year: Dillon 1998 Édition Limitée
It
isn’t the most famous variety from Martinique, but it’s time you heard about
Dillon, made on the outskirts of Fort-de-France and one of the globe’s best rhums agricoles. And the
company’s 1998 vintage is a superstar, with notes of wood, dried fruit, apricot
and a hint of white wine and an oh-so-luxurious texture. It is elegant,
sophisticated and, well, out of this world.
Runners
Up: Rhum Damoiseau XO (Guadeloupe); Rhum Depaz VSOP (Martinique)
Best
New Rum: Pusser’s Gunpowder Proof
The
name Pusser’s is a legendary one in the Caribbean (particularly in the British
Virgin Islands), so we were rather enthused to see how good the brand’s newest
launch was. The rum is a navy-style rum (and a blend of rums from Trinidad and
Guyana) at what the brand says is the original Admiralty strength (back when
the British Navy used to give out a daily rum ration), at 54.5 percent ABV.
It’s powerful, robust and an authentic tribute to the Navy rums of yesteryear.
This is what Pusser’s should taste like.
Best
New Rhum Agricole: A1710 Nuée Ardente
It
isn’t often a new rum brand launches in the Caribbean – and especially in
Martinique. But entrepreneur Yves Assier de Pompignan has done just that with A
1710, based at the Habitation du Simon in Martinique. Right now, A 1710 rums
are a blend of rums from across the French Caribbean, including Martinique and
Guadeloupe (with three varieties of varying blends), and the result is
something special, led by our New Rhum Agricole of the Year, the A 1710 Nuée
Ardente, an intoxicatingly complex blend of rums between 9 and 17 years of age.
Best
White Rum: Santiago de Cuba Carta Blanca
We
always like to say that the primary test of a white rum is whether it gives you
a headache. But the test of a great white rum is whether it can be enjoyed
neat. And right now, there’s no better white rum than that of Cuba’s Santiago
de Cuba brand, which is, right now, producing the island’s best rum
expressions. It’s light, sweet and remarkably smooth.
Best
White Rhum Agricole: Rhum Bologne Black Cane
There
are no greater white rums in the world thn the white rhums agricole of the French Caribbean, floral,
complex expressions that are sometimes even better than aged molasses-based
rums. Our favorite this year? Guadeloupe’s Rhum Bologne Black Cane, made from
difficult-to-grow “black” sugarcane and a simply astonishing white rhum, with
notes of tropical fruit, mango, cane and anise and a sweet finish. Most
importantly, it’s so good you don’t even need to put sugar in your ti’ punch.
Best
Gold Rum: Rum-Bar Gold Rum
It’s
nice to see a Jamaican rum on this list, thanks to the efforts of the island’s
Worthy Park Estate Ltd rum plantation. This year’s winner is Rum-Bar Gold rum,
a classic gold rum aged for a minimum of four years with a profile marked by
fruit, coconut, vanilla, confectioners’ sugar — it’s a terrific mixing rum
and sippable, too, on the rocks.
Best
Spiced Rum: Siesta Key Distiller’s Reserve Solera Blend
One
rum brand has won more of our Rum Awards than any other, and it’s a boutique
distillery in Florida called Drum Circle Distilling. Distiller Troy Roberts’
Siesta Key Rum has won this category every year since the original Rum Awards
in 2012, and thanks to creativity and continued, overwhelming qualty it’s hard
to see that changing. The latest Distiller’s Reserve is another spiced rum
using natural ingredients that is, without a doubt, the world’s best spiced
rum.
Best
Flavored Rum: Siesta Key Toasted Coconut Rum
The
flavored rum category has all kinds of varieties, though too often one finds
rums long on artificial ingredients and short on quality. That’s not the case
with Siesta Key’s Toasted Coconut rum, a superb expression infusing white rum
with real shredded coconut. The result is, well, spectacular.
Best Overproof Rum: Rhum Neisson Esprit Bio
This
rum is significant for two reasons: first, it’s the Caribbean’s first-ever
certified organic rum, thanks to the work of the always-enterprising Neisson
distillery in Martinique’s Le Carbet. Second, at 66 percent ABV, it’s a
full-fledged overproof rum with a robust, decidedly vegetal taste that’s unlike
any other Overproof you’ll find in the French Caribbean or beyond.
Best
Bottle Design: Rhum Clement Canne Bleue 2016
Martinique’s
Rhum Clement redefined rum bottle design when it began commissioning
high-profile artists to design its now-famous black-hued limited edition,
something that led a host of brands to begin doing similar projects. But in
this regard, Clement is still king, with another beautiful design for this
year’s Blue Cane variety.
Rum
Bar of the Year: Rum Bar at the Cooper Island Beach Club
You’re
sailing the British Virgin Islands and the rum is getting low, so you find a
mooring ball and swim in to the nearest tiny island you can find. Steps from
the sand you find something magical: a bar filled with 100 rums from around the
Caribbean. But it isn’t a mirage. This is the Rum Bar at the Cooper Island
Beach Club and it remains one of the Caribbean’s best, with a great mix of
molasses-based and agricole rums and great cocktail creations, too. It’s a
Mecca on the Caribbean rum trail.
Rum
Journal Hall of Fame
This
year is the fifth edition of the Rum Awards, and to celebrate our five-year
anniversary we’ve create the Rum Journal Hall of Fame, which celebrates those
doing the most to honor and spread the gospel of rum and contribute to the rum
industry. We’ve launched the Rum Journal Hall of Fame, with five inductees, as
listed below.
Allen
Smith, Master Blender,
Mount Gay Rum
Lorena
Vazquez, Master Blender,
Ron Zacapa
Gregory
Vernant, Master Distiller,
Rhum Neisson
Benjamin
Jones, Regional
Director, North America, Rhum Clement/Rhum JM
Robert
Burr, Publisher, Rob’s
Rum Guide
Read all about this at http://www.caribjournal.com/2016/12/22/rum-awards-2016/
