Review: Tanduay Silver Asian Rum   (83.5/100)
a review by Chip Dykstra (Aka Arctic Wolf)
June 04, 2019

In 2013, Tanduay Holdings began an American Invasion by placing two new rums into the North American market. At the time, Tanduay was one of the very largest Rum producers in the world. (The reason they were relatively unknown in North America is because their Asian rum is produced in the Philipines and was sold almost exclusively into Asia.) The invasion was launched with two premium (a Silver, and a Gold) rums. Although Tanduay has not yet established itself fully in the US market, the Asian sales have continued at a breathtaking pace. In fact by 2017, Tanduay had surpassed Bacardi as the top selling rum brand in the world (see here).

Tanduay Silver Rum is a blend of rums some of which are aged up to 5 years. After blending these rums are filtered to become a pale straw coloured spirit meant for mixing high-end cocktails.

Note: The origin of Tanduay Holdings Inc. can be traced to 1937 when The Manilla Wine Merchants Inc. was incorporated. This company was basically an amalgamation of several business interests, the important one for our discussion being the Manilla Steamship Company which held agricultural interests in the Western Visayas and had been producing rum (and other spirits) in the Philippines since at least 1893. In 1999, the Manilla Wine Merchants Inc. formally changed their name to Tanduay Holdings.

In the Bottle 4/5

The Tanduay Silver Asian Rum arrives in a tall, clear bottle bearing a simple black label and easy to read grey and white fonts. There is a thin red strip under the brand name which serves as an attractive accent. The label informs me that the rum (produced for the US market) is bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume. There is some sort of design embossed upon the glass above and below the label which is helpful as it makes the bottle easier to grip. The bottle is sealed with a metallic pressed on screw cap which is the only deterrent to an otherwise smart presentation.

Interestingly, there is no age statement on the label. Although the rum is advertised as a blend of rums aged up to 5 years. I expect that most of this blend is much younger.

In the Glass 8/10

In my glass, the rum is a pale straw colour which when held up to the light displays a greenish tint. The colour is very reminiscent of Reposado Tequila and indicates to me that perhaps the rum has purposely not been filtered clear to leave some residual flavour from the aging within the flavour profile. When I raise the glass to my nose, a gentle but firm butterscotch toffee rises out of the glass followed by a soft waft of fine oak spice, soft banana and lightly sharp orange peel. I allowed the glass to breathe, and enjoyed developing scents of light baking spices (vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger) and the delicious scent of light brown sugar. The aroma is very nice although there are a few traces of astingency consistent with a young spirit.

In the Mouth 51/60

The flavour is perhaps more akin to a young amber rum than to a clear white rum. I taste a firm but light honeyed butterscotch, some fine oak spices, light impressions of coconut, hints of banana and orange peel, as well as mild indications of  baking spices (in particular vanilla and cardamom). Although I would not call the rum smooth, when sipped neat it is nevertheless easier on palate (and more flavourful) than a typical white daiquiri rum.

Of course I wanted to explore the mixability of the rum, and I began with a few standard rum cocktails: the Cuba Libre‘, and the Daiquiri. Each mixed drink was very good; and in fact, I spent the rest of my first afternoon with the Silver Rum exploring various daiquiri recipes (see two of them down below).

In the Throat  12/15

The Silver Rum has a lightly heated exit featuring ebbing flavours of butterscotch and citrus spice. The burn was strong enough to warm my throat; but it was precisely this light spicy burn which seemed to make the rum work so well in those daiquiri style cocktails.

The Afterburn 8.5/10

The Tanduay Silver Asian Rum is a very pleasant mixing rum. Although I preferred to mix Daiquiris, the rum is no slouch in Cuba Libres, and makes a swell mojito as well. Frankly there is not much more you can expect from a light rum.

If you are interested in comparing more scores, here is a link to my other published Rum Reviews.

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Suggested Recipes:

Lime and Maraschino Daiquiri

1 3/4 oz Tanduay Silver Rum
1/8 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
1 oz Fresh squeezed Lime Juice
3/4 oz Sugar Syrup
Ice
Lime Slice

Add the first four ingredients into a Metal shaker with ice
Shake until the outside of the shaker frost
Strain into a suitable cocktail glass
Garnish with a slice of Lime

Please Enjoy Responsibly!

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Tanduay Daiquiri #2

2 oz Tanduay Silver Rum
1 tbs Orange Curacao
1 tbs Fresh Squeezed lime juice
1 tbs Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
1/4 oz Sugar Syrup
Cracked Ice
Orange Peel

Add all of the ingredients into a metal shaker with the cracked ice
Shake until the outside of the shaker frosts.
Strain into a cocktail glass
Twist the orange peel over the cocktail
Garnish

Please Enjoy Responsibly!

Note: If  you are interested in more of my original cocktail recipes, please click this link (Cocktails and Recipes) for more of my mixed drink recipes!

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You may (loosely) interpret the scores as follows.

0-25 A spirit with a rating this low would actually kill you.
26-49 Depending upon your fortitude you might actually survive this.
50 -59 You are safe to drink this…but you shouldn’t.
60-69 Substandard swill which you may offer to people you do not want to see again.
70-74 Now we have a fair mixing rum or whisky. Accept this but make sure it is mixed into a cocktail.
75-79 You may begin to serve this to friends, again probably still cocktail territory.
80-84 We begin to enjoy this spirit neat or on the rocks. (I will still primarily mix cocktails)
85-89 Excellent for sipping or for mixing!
90-94 Definitely a primary sipping spirit, in fact you may want to hoard this for yourself.
95-97.5 The Cream of the Crop
98+ I haven’t met this bottle yet…but I want to.

Very loosely we may put my scores into terms that you may be familiar with on a Gold, Silver, and Bronze medal scale as follows:

70 – 79.5 Bronze Medal (Recommended only as a mixer)
80 – 89.5 Silver Medal (Recommended for sipping and or a high quality mixer)
90 – 95 Gold Medal (Highly recommended for sipping and for sublime cocktails.)
95.5+ Platinum Award (Highest Recommendation)