Review: Bacardi Oakheart Smooth Spiced Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 20, 2011

On September 1, 2011, Bacardi launched their new Oakheart Smooth Spiced Rum. As the name suggests, the Oakheart is an aged rum. The rums in the blend have been aged in charred oak barrels to give the rum added depth of character and perhaps a bit of whisky-like smokiness. I met the Bacardi Area Sales Manager at the Sherbrooke “Drink Like a Pirate” Rum Festival, and he arranged for me to receive a bottle of the Oakheart Spiced Rum to review on my website.

For this review, three friends and I performed a side by side tasting comparing Brinley Gold Shipwreck Spiced Rum with the Bacardi Oakheart Spiced Rum and the standard-bearer for the spiced rum category, Captain Morgan’s Original Spiced. Each of these rums is built on the foundation of aging in American oak barrels, and each of these rums seems to walk the path of a vanilla and caramel rum accented by fragrant spices which compliment the rum but do not to dominate it.

Here an excerpt from of my review of Bacardi Oakheart Spiced Rum:

“…The initial mouth-feel to the rum is quite creamy, and this creaminess serves to coat the palate allowing the flavours to linger. I taste a lot of vanilla, some nice rummy butterscotch and a little dollop of maple syrup. The rum has a bit of spicy heat as well, with some orange peel, cinnamon and cloves heating the palate…”

Here is the full Review: