Top 100 Rums That Cost Less Than $100Number One

Number One on the List

     The Houston Chronicle has issued its top 100 rums list that cost less than $100.00.  I find the list very interesting, but I cant believe there are several rums like Ron Zacapa 23 Solera, Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva, Havana Club Seven Year Old and a few others that were not included.   It is great to have such a list available for us to view and a catalog to go to for ideas for the purchase of some good rums.

     Tired of drinking standard Captain Morgan, but don’t quite have the budget to splurge for the good stuff on the top shelf? Not to worry — when it comes to rum, there’s plenty of affordable middle ground.

UnderTheLabel used our Smart Rating system, which combines expert reviews and liquor competition results, to find the 100 best rums for under $100. We included the average price, Smart Rating and category (dark, spiced, cachaca, et al.) of each rum.

Every bottle on this list has a Smart Rating of at least 91, so if you’re craving a drink but can’t justify spending too much, there’s plenty of quality out there for the penny-pinching connoisseur.

#100. Atlantico Platino  Price: $20  Category: White  Smart Rating: 91

#99. ILC Aguardiente Tradicional  Price: $7  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 91

#98. El Dorado Rum 12 Year Old  Price: $30  Category: Aged, Dark, Flavored  Smart Rating: 91

#97. Savanna 8 Ans Traditionel Rum  Price: $25  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 91

#96. Roble Viejo Ultra Añejo Rum Aged 10 Years  Price: $55  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 91

#95. Stone Rum  Price: $23  Category: White  Smart Rating: 91

#94. Stolen Dark Rum  Price: $18  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 91

#93. Real McCoy 3 Year Old  Price: $20  Category: White  Smart Rating: 91

#92. Rusticator Rum  Price: $40  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 91

#91. Pampero Especial Rum  Price: $20  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 91

#90. Plantation Original Dark Rum  Price: $35  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 91

#89. Mount Gay Black Barrel Rum  Price: $30  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 91

#88. Debonaire Very Special Reserve Rum  Price: $38  Category: Premium, Aged  Smart Rating: 91

#87. Malahat Spirits Spiced  Price: $40  Category: Spiced  Smart Rating: 91

#86. Cruzan Single Barrel Rum  Price: $30  Category: Premium  Smart Rating: 91

#85. 3 Praias Agricole Rum  Price: $44  Category: Cachaca, Gold  Smart Rating: 91

#84. Hum Botanical Spirit  Price: $40  Category: Overproof, Spiced  Smart Rating: 91

#83. Screech Rum  Price: $26  Category: Dark, Aged  Smart Rating: 92

#82. Ron Abuelo Añejo Rum  Price: $13  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 92

#81. Stolen Gold Rum  Price: $30  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 92

#80. La Mauny VSOP Old Agricole Rum  Price: $49  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 92

#79. El Dorado 15 Year Old Rum  Price: $30  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 92

#78. Sagatiba Cachaca Brazilian  Price: $28  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 92

#77. Murray McDavid Guyana Rum 1990  Price: $76  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 92

#76. Zafra Master Reserve Rum  Aged 21 Years  Price: $40  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 92

#75. Centenario Fundacion XX Años Rum  Price: $44  Category: Aged, Premium  Smart Rating: 93

#74. Captain Morgan Rum 1671  Price: $20  Category: Flavored  Smart Rating: 93

#73. Gosling’s Family Reserve Old Rum  Price: $80  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 93

#72. Angostura 5 Year Anejo Rum  Price: $24  Category: Aged, Flavored, Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#71. Tommy Bahama White Sand Rum  Price: $24  Category: White  Smart Rating: 93

#70. Cruzan Aged Dark Rum  Price: $16  Category: Aged, Dark  Smart Rating: 93

#69. Ron Botran 1893 Solera Rum  Price: $71  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 93

#68. Clement Rhum Agricole VSOP  Price: $42  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#67. Appleton Estate V/X  Price: $20  Category: Dark, Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#66. Diplomático Añejo Rum  Price: $14  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#65. Havana Club Selecciíon de Maestros  Price: $62  Category: Aged, Overproof, Premium
Smart Rating: 93

#64. Plantation 1998 Old Reserve Rum  Price: $35  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 93

#63. Rhum J.M. Vieux 1997 Rum  Price: $90  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 93

#62. Plantation Rum Grande Reserve  Price: $20  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#61. Single Cask Rhum Agricole  Price: $62  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#60. Diplomatico Reserva Rum  Price: $20  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 93

#59. Kirk and Sweeney 12 Year   Price: $40  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 93

#58. Clement Créole Shrubb  Price: $35  Category: Spiced  Smart Rating: 93

#57. Admiral Rodney 12 Year Old Rum  Price: $35  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 94

#56. Castries Rum Cream  Price: $30  Category: Flavored  Smart Rating: 94

#55. English Harbour 5 Year Old Antigua Rum  Price: $30  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 94

#54. Rhum J.M. White Rum  Price: $38  Category: White  Smart Rating: 94

#53. Phraya Extra-1  Price: $50  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 94

#52. Captain Morgan Black Spiced Rum  Price: $22  Category: Spiced  Smart Rating: 94

#51. Flor de Cana 4 Year Old Gold Rum  Price: $15  Category: Flavored, Cachaca, Spiced
Smart Rating: 94

#50. Tíz White Gold Rum  Price: $26  Category: Premium  Smart Rating: 94

#49. Ron Fortuna 8 Year Old  Price: $22  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 94

#48. Ron Abuelo Añejo 7 Años Reserva Superior Rum  Price: $20  Category: Aged
Smart Rating: 94

#47. Cabana Cachaca Rum  Price: $35  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 94

#46. Whaler’s Vanille Rum  Price: $13  Category: Flavored  Smart Rating: 94

#45. Rhum J.M. Rhum Agricole Millésime 2001  Price: $89  Category: Gold
Smart Rating: 94

#44. Coisa Nossa Cachaca Branca  Price: $15  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 94

#43. Yaguara Cachaca  Price: $45  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 94

#42. Don Rafael Cacao  Price: $40  Category: Flavored  Smart Rating: 94

#41. 1931 Rum  Price: $45  Category: Aged, Premium  Smart Rating: 94

#40. Coisa Nossa Cachaca Amadeirada  Price: $15  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 94

#39. Kinkylux White  Price: $18  Category: White, Aged  Smart Rating: 94

#38. Bounty Overproof  Price: $13  Category: Overproof  Smart Rating: 94

#37. Kinkynero Dark  Price: $18  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 94

#36. Real McCoy 5 Year Old  Price: $24  Category: Dark, Gold  Smart Rating: 94

#35. Sergeant Classick Gold Rum  Price: $22  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 94

#34. Caribbean Treasure Rumby Vanilla  Price: $35  Category: Flavored  Smart Rating: 94

#33. Murray McDavid Guyana Rum 1991  Price: $71  Category: Premium  Smart Rating: 94

#32. Facundo Rum Exquisito  Price: $90  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 94

#31. Appleton Estate 12 Year Old  Price: $30  Category: Aged, Gold  Smart Rating: 94

#30. Red Leg Spiced Rum  Price: $30  Category: Spiced  Smart Rating: 94 

#29. Rougaroux Sugarshine Rum  Price: $29  Category: Overproof  Smart Rating: 94

#28. Miami Club White Rum  Price: $28  Category: White  Smart Rating: 94

#27. Stolen Over-Proof White Rum  Price: $40  Category: Premium  Smart Rating: 94

#26. Rhum J.M. Rhum Agricole Blanc  Price: $32  Category: White  Smart Rating: 94

#25. Appleton Estate Reserve  Price: $27  Category: Dark  Smart Rating: 95

#24. Botran Añejo Reserva Rum  Price: $25  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 95

#23. Ron Cartavio XO Rum  Price: $80  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 95

#22. Pusser’s 15 Year Old Rum  Price: $60  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 95

#21. Ron Cartavio Solera Rum 12 Años  Price: $35  Category: Aged, Dark, Flavored, Spiced
Smart Rating: 95

#20. Inner Circle Green Spot Traditional Pot Still Rum  Price: $55  Category: Dark, Overproof
Smart Rating: 95

#19. Tanduay Silver Rum  Price: $20  Category: White  Smart Rating: 95 

#18. Vizcaya VXOP Cask 21  Price: $20  Category: Aged, Flavored, Premium, Spiced  Smart Rating: 96

#17. Tommy Bahama Golden Sun Rum  Price: $28  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 96

#16. Matusalem Gran Reserva 23 Year Old Rum  Price: $62  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 96

#15. Santa Teresa Araku Ron y Coffee Liqueur  Price: $22  Category: Flavored  Smart Rating: 96

#14. Angostura 7 Year Old Dark Rum  Price: $32  Category: Aged, Dark, Flavored, Premium
Smart Rating: 96

#13. Montecristo Rum  Price: $40  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 96

#12. Appleton Estate Extra Rum  Price: $37  Category: Aged, Dark  Smart Rating: 96

#11. Plantation XO 20th Anniversary Rum  Price: $60  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 96

#10. Berkshire Mountain Ragged Mountain Rum  Price: $26  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 97

#9. Pusser’s Rum  Price: $22  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 97

#8. Santa Teresa 1796 Ron Antiguo de Solera  Price: $40  Category: Gold  Smart Rating: 97

#7. Dictador 20 Rum  Price: $60  Category: Aged, Dark  Smart Rating: 98

#6. Ron Abuelo 7 Year Old Rum  Price: $25  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 98

#5. Pampero Aniversario Rum  Price: $30  Category: Aged, Dark  Smart Rating: 98

#4. Cruzan Single Barrel Extra-Aged Rum  Price: $16  Category: Aged, Premium  Smart Rating: 99

#3. Leblon Cachaca  Price: $30  Category: Cachaca  Smart Rating: 99

#2. Zaya Gran Reserva Rum  Price: $35  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 99

#1. Ron Abuelo 12 Year Old Rum  Price: $25  Category: Aged  Smart Rating: 100

Read More at http://blog.chron.com/hottopics/2016/01/best-rums-for-under-100/

U.S. Grants Cuban Government a Trademark for Havana Club Rum

Decision angers Bacardi, which agreed to buy U.S. rights in 1994 from the Arechabala family that fled Cuba in 1960

     The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office this week awarded a trademark for Havana Club rum-Cuba's most famous brand-to the Cuban government, reversing a policy that denied Havana rights to the brand in the U.S.   The move is expected to reignite longstanding tension between Bacardi Ltd. and the Cuban government.   The Patent Office, which issued a document reviewed by The Wall Street Journal confirming the award, said it doesn't comment on trademark applications.

     Privately held Bacardi has been selling Havana Club branded rum in the U.S. since 1994. The company acquired the U.S. rights from Havana Club's founding family, who fled Cuba around 1960 after the brand was seized by the government.    Bacardi's Havana Club rum is made in Puerto Rico due to the U.S. economic embargo.   Bacardi Executive Vice President of External Affairs Rick Wilson said the company would "take every means available to fight [the decision]," including litigation. "It's appalling that this administration goes ahead and grants this license to the Cuban government for assets that were confiscated," he said of the Obama administration.

     Pernod Ricard SA, which has a joint venture with the Cuban government, has been selling a Cuban-made version of the rum outside the U.S.   The Patent Office's decision could open a new battle for the future of the U.S. rum market by allowing the Cuban government to sell Cuban-made Havana Club in the U.S. for the first time in decades once the U.S. embargo is lifted.   Pernod Ricard said that Cubaexport, the Cuban entity that applied for the U.S. trademark for Havana Club, received a trademark license for 15 days, which is when the trademark was slated to lapse.   The company has applied for a 10-year extension of its trademark through 2026 and expects to receive it. A spokesman said the decision doesn't have "any business impact because of the embargo," which prevents it from selling Cuban-made rum in the U.S. 

     Havana Club was Cuba's second-largest rum brand at the time of the 1959 revolution behind Bacardi. The Bacardi family was able to continue to make its rum after the revolution because they had distilleries in Puerto Rico and Mexico, Mr. Wilson said, but Havana Club's founding family-the Arechabalas-only operated in Cuba. So the Arechabala family's distilleries were nationalized.   The Arechabala family failed to renew its trademark registration for Havana Club in 1973, according to Pernod Ricard. Three years later, the Cuban government secured a trademark for the brand.   It joined with Paris-based Pernod Ricard in 1993 to handle sales of the brand world-wide, according to Pernod Ricard's account of what happened. 

Read More at http://www.wsj.com/articles/cuban-government-granted-a-u-s-trademark-for-havana-club-rum-1452890441

The GQ Guide to Smuggling Booze into Those Concerts

     When sneaking booze into a concert venue, you face two challenges. The first and most substantial challenge is security, of which there are many types. There are burly bouncers with beady eyes who assess your capacity for misbehavior as you present your ID outside the club. There are geezers at folk festivals who practically adopt you after they take your ticket. And then there are TSA-level teams in matching neon shirts giving out over-the-clothes cavity searches outside major events. Each requires a different level of stealth.

     Depending on where your self-respect is at right now, some of the following techniques can overcome both challenges. Others will only solve the first. None are strictly endorsed by GQ. We just want you to know what's out there.

     One of my favorites is my trusty "Bible" cut out for a hip flask.  This is a great unassuming little unit that will get you about a half pint of your favorite libation into the event.   

     The umbrella with the hollow shaft filled with booze is another one.  Go to GQ on line and see the rest of the interesting ideas that people have come up with to bring your booze to the party.

Read More at http://www.gq.com/story/alcohol-smuggling-guide

The Baths at Virgin Gorda

     One of the many beautiful places in the British Virgin Islands is Virgin Gorda and in particular the Baths.  This is an outcropping of granite in a place where you rarely ever see granite.  This outcrop looks like someone just dropped a huge pile of enormous boulders at the seashore and went away.  Crawling around these boulders and between them is a great adventure and one you ill never forget.

Chilly Nights and a Warm Hot Apple Toddy

     The first really chilly evenings have landed in the Keys, and it is definitely time to bundle up and enjoy a hot apple toddy as I enjoy the sunset on the aft deck today.   What to make this with, I have a taste for a good spiced rum and a friend gave me a bottle of King Ginger Liqueur some time back I want to try.   Good pure apple juice, warmed up and the addition of a great spiced rum and a little bit of ginger flavor, I think that will do it.

Siesta Hot Apple Toddy

·         2 oz.  Siesta Key Aged Spiced Rum

·         1 oz.  King Ginger Liqueur

·         6 oz. 100% (Not from Concentrate) Apple Cider

·         Fresh Ground Cinnamon

·         Couple of drops of Fresh Lemon Juice

Warm a coffee mug in Hot Water, add rum, ginger and apple juice warmed for about 1 minute in a microwave, stir, and garnish with a a couple of drops of lemon juice and fresh ground cinnamon.

     This is just what the doctor ordered, it is really flavorful, not to sweet and just perfect to take that chill off on these chilly evenings.   Make some of this up for the evening's enjoyment and take the chill off of you evening.  

El Dorado and Demerara Introduces the Rare Collection of Single Still Expressions

The Basis for the Rare Collection

     In 2016, the Demerara Distillers Launches Rare Collection range: a limited selection of three rum single and at full proof.  The Demerara Distillers has adopted the concept that Velier created about fifteen years ago The first three expressions will be under the El Dorado label.    The Demerara Distillers has adopted the concept that Velier has created about fifteen years ago in creating his Diamond Rums and in its collaboration with the distillery has taken him around the world, helping create the myth of Demerara rum.
      The Rum “Diamond” 1999 Demerara - Velier 15 Years is a new Demerara product of Velier family, it is a diamond of Guyana, a land of South America. After the 2014 trip, Luca Velier has selected that spirit, whose flavor leaves you unarmed. Situated between a fruit liqueur and a rum, the harmony of tones that dominates nose and palate is a real surprise. Its medium-light body comes from the use of the Diamond Still, a double column Coffey Still, and is a pleasure to taste, suitable also for the palates that love simpler products. That 1999 rum can be distinguished from other diamonds, the other “Diamonds”, in particular from the 1996 one, for its smoked, interesting, unique shades. Velier family have made 1137 bottles, which are the symbol of a high quality work that belongs to ancient culture and profession, famous all over the world and boasting a circulation dating back to the ships of Christopher Columbus. A real treasure!

    The parent rum is Demerara, branded El Dorado, and has chosen the rum of the three 'legendary' wooden stills.   The wooden double pot still, Port Mourant, the wooden single pot Versailles and the column coffey wooden still, Enmore, these stills produced the rums that were selected in 1993.   We are pleased and excited because the rum is really sensational. 

The 2016 Rare Collection

     Demerara has a long and stellar history in the sugar and rum business and her are a few highlights.

http://www.eldorado-rum.com/

1790 – The most popular in the United States are the Demerara rum.
1813 – Guyana passes from the Netherlands to England, and knows a new expansion. Distilleries were built alongside the sugar mills.
1900 – Guyana is the second biggest exporter of rum after Martinique.
1900-1950 – Bookers, the largest manufacturer of Demerara sugar, controls the production of rum.
1952 – All the distilleries annexed to its sugar refineries are incorporated in the Guyana Distilleries.
1960 – Even the distillery of Uitvlugt is incorporated.
1975 – Guyana Distilleries is ceded to the State, which builds the Guyana Liquor Corporation.
1976 – Incorporation of Guyana Distilleries, Demerara Distillers and Diamond Liqueurs in Guyana Liquors Corporation led by Yesu Persaud.
1978 – Inauguration of the new bulk terminal in Georgetown, Demerara River.

1992 – El Dorado brand is launched.

These three single still expressions as sure to be ones that are incredibly hard to get your hands on an I'm looking forward to at sometime this year getting o at least taste them.