My 2016 Spiced Rum Taste-off has reached the final stages, and if you are looking for trends in my countdown, the one that shines through most clearly for me is that barrel aging matters. It’s not a perfect correlation; but if you have been following my Countdown List of spiced rums as it has grown over the summer you will have seen that the spiced rums which exhibit a little of the depth and character which come from oak aging are outperforming those that do not.
Bacardi’s Oakheart Smooth Spiced Rum is one of those spirits which shows firm signs of age in the glass. It is produced from a blend of column distilled rums which have been aged in charred oak barrels. This aged rum is then spiced to reach a flavour profile which walks the path of a vanilla accented by fragrant spices the combination of which is meant to compliment the aged rum but not to dominate it.
Here is a link to the second best spiced rum on my rum shelf:
#2 Spiced Rum: Bacardi Oakheart
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I hope you all find this countdown enjoyable and you can follow the rankings here:
The Yongehurst Distillery is a brand new Micro-Distillery located at 346 Westmoreland Ave near Dupont and Dovercourt in Toronto, Ontario. The facility is owned by long-time friends, Rocco Panacci and John-Paul Sacco, and what has me particularly excited is that Rocco and John-Paul are making what just might be Toronto’s first micro-distilled rum upon their brand new small pot/column combination still.
Lemon Hart is an iconic rum brand with roots which stretch back to the late 18th century when Mr. Lemon Hart began to supply rum to the British Royal Navy. By 1804, production of his “Lemon Hart Rum” was moved from his small merchant office in Cornwall, England to a larger facility in London. Over 150 years later the production of the blend had shifted to the Hiram Walker Distillery in Ontario, Canada.
The Rum Howler Blog 