My Top 5 Favorite Dark Rums

Although I have not written about it very much, rum is one of my favorite drinks, especially dark rum. There are many excellent amber rums out there, but dark rum is definitely my favorite.

White rum is best used in cocktails like a mojito where you do not want colour to affect the appearance of the drink. In a rum and Coke or straight up, I find it lacking.

So I thought it was time to start writing and reviewing rums, and what better way to start than to list my current top five favorite dark rums.

As I live in Ontario, a province that seems to enjoy whiskey over rum, my choices become very limited. In some LCBO stores, there are rum sections. Other stores have rum shelves. The LCBO in Liberty Village has a huge store and a very small selection of rum. Visiting Nova Scotia and Newfoundland was fabulous. They love their rum and I would walk into the liquor store there to find rum walls! A wall of white, a long aisle of amber and a wall of dark. Huge varieties of rum! Sadly, not so much in Ontario where the demand is lower. I'm sure if I had access to the selection that they have, this list would be quite different.

So here is my top five regular priced dark rums (to date):

#1 Smugglers Cove

This rum originally was brewed by Glenora Distillery when the distillery first opened to bring in revenue while their single malt whiskey aged. Now they have farmed out their rum operation to Newfoundland. Only available in the Maritimes, it is definitely number one on my list. I always look forward to Teena bringing some home when she is out east and when Teena's sister, Sarah, sends some to us a Christmas and birthdays.

#2 Goslings Black Seal

Goslings Brothers is located in Hamilton, Bermuda. One thing I missed seeing when we were there last year was that the store was closed for the first week of the year and I never had a chance to go in and buy some of their more premium brands. Black Seal is thankfully available in Ontario and has a wonderful smoothness to it.

#3 Newfoundland Screech

Newfoundland Screech is available in Ontario and I love it. The rum has a bit of a bad reputation as the term Screech once was used in Newfoundland to describe cheap horrible rum. Now brewed by the Newfoundland Liquor Commission, this is an excellent smooth rum. 

#4 Captain Morgan Dark

Originally Captain Morgan was made by Seagram's, a Canadian company and first hit store shelves in  1944, the company has since been sold to the huge international British conglomerate Diageo. The Captain has long been a favorite of mine.

#5 Havana Club

Havana Club 7 year old dark is a little more pricey at $32.45 per bottle. When Teena and I were in Cuba many many years ago, we bought a bottle of this there for $8! It's a great rum that I buy every once in awhile as I mostly prefer to stay in the $25 range. Hmm, maybe it's time for me to splurge a little and get a bottle. It's been awhile!

So there's my current top five. This year I plan to try different rums and, of course, write about them. There's another Newfoundland rum available now in Ontario, Old Sam Rum. I think maybe I know which one will be first!

El Dorado Special Reserve 21 Year old Rum

I came home from work on Wednesday, tired and worn out, yet having to get ready to go to fencing practice.

My office is closer to home than Teena's so I usually beat her home and have time to walk our dog, KC, and empty the dishwasher. She came in handed me a bag and said that she bought me a gift.

And what a gift!!!

It was a bottle of El Dorado 21 year old rum.

I have only tried it once, at a tasting at the Summerhill LCBO and absolutely loved it. Now I stood holding a bottle of the best tasting rum I have ever had, in the safety and comfort of my own kitchen.

What did I do to deserve such a gift. Apparently I am a great husband, always doing the little things. The way I see it, I do dozens of little things for Teena, she does hundreds of little things for me. Yet, she still buys me something like this. This is not a little thing. It is a big thing.

I couldn't try it until after I got home from fencing, where I poured myself a generous amount into a brandy snifter. No Diet Coke for this.

The moment I popped the cork, the room flooded with the aromas of the rum. It was a beautiful smell. The barrel aging makes it a dark brownish colour.

When I sipped it, the full rum flavour comes through. There is no bite to it, no edge ... just a smooth, beautiful, powerful flavour. This is a rum to be enjoyed as you would a liqueur. And enjoy it I will.

According to the El Dorado website, this is "matured in 45 gallon oak casks in an ideal natural climate for ageing - within six degrees of the equator on the tropical north coast of South America".

They go on to say that El Dorado 21 Year Old "is designed for the connoisseur of rums who has the time to indulge and appreciate the wonders of this creation."

And appreciate it I will.

Thank you, Teena! Thank you!

Smuggler's Cove Dark Rum

"Just like smugglers using the cover of the night to deliver their goods during prohibition, this rum's rich and deep auburn darkness conceals within the history of its making."
Quote from Rumshop.net September 2003 newsletter

For Christmas each year, Teena's sister, Sarah and her husband, Joey, send us some much appreciated bottles of rum, which are not available here in Ontario. One of my favorites is Smuggler's Cove Dark Rum brewed by Glenora Distillery located in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

Glenora opened in 1990, not just as a distillery but also as a nine room inn complete with a 50 seat dining room and a pub on the grounds.

It's major claim to fame is being the only producer of single malt whisky in North America with their Glen Breton Rare Canadian Single Malt Whisky . They are very proud of this and you can read about their whisky production all over their website.

The also have extensive coverage with their battle with The Scotch Whisky Association over the use of the word "Glen" in it's name. Their claim is that "glen” is a Scottish term, and only whisky produced in Scotland should be called Scotch whisky. Glenora claims they use the "Glen" to reflect the region as the distillery is located in Glenville, Cape Breton, outside the town of Glenora Falls, and do not call their product "Scotch". The battle has seesawed back and forth.

Glenora is very proud of their whisky-making and their entire website is almost dedicated exclusively to their single malt whiskey.

Being a rum drinker and a fan of Smuggler's Cove, I was puzzled by Glenora's lack of enthusiasm for their rum product. I had to do a very thorough search through their website to find where they even admit to making rum. And they mention it almost in passing: "In addition to distilling single malt whisky, which is presently aging in oak barrels, Glenora blends and bottles Smuggler's Cove dark, white and amber rums."

They don't even mention that at the 2003 International Rum Festival, it won a Gold Medal in the Dark Rum Category. Not too shabby but I found that gem on another rum website.

Smuggler's Cove is an excellent tasting rum and stands the ultimate test of being sipped on it's own. It has a nice molasses taste and is a very smooth going down. I really enjoy this rum. You would think that Glenora would show a little more pride in having made this.

Hey Sarah!
Hey Joey!

Did you notice the picture at the top of this article. We're out!

The Mojito

When Teena and I went to Cuba a few years ago, I fell in love with one of Hemingway's favorite cocktails, the Mojito. Our resort made great Mojitos. During a day trip to Havana, we made at stop at the famous La Bodeguita del Medio where Ernest Hemingway was a regular customer and is said to have enjoyed more than a few of this refreshing beverage.

I have been searching Toronto for the best Mojito and so far surprisingly Milestones on John Street has had the best in the city. Always consistently good. I was especially impressed when I ordered one one day and the bartender refused to make it as he didn't have the right rum. Any other place would have substituted but not here.

At home I have experimented with creating my own Mojito recipe and think at last I have it. In it you can use sugar or sugar syrup. You can easily make a sugar syrup buy putting sugar and water into a pot and gently heating until the sugar is dissolved. The syrup will keep very well in a fridge. Some people use 2 parts sugar to one part water. I tried 4 parts sugar to 3 parts water which is supposed to have 1 teaspoon of the syrup equal 1 teaspoon of sugar when called for in a recipe. I use Presidents Choice Organics Sugar (from crystallized organic cane syrup)

First you need fresh mint. Teena and I grew our own this year. Also needed are:

1 1/4 oz white Rum
4 oz Club Soda
2 Tsp lime juice (I use ReaLime Juice not juice from a real lime)
2 tsp of sugar syrup or 1 tsp of sugar
Ice

Put 4 mint leaves in the bottom of a glass and add the sugar syrup and the lime juice. Find something to gently crush the mint without breaking it up (called muddling). I use the base of a wooden spoon. Then add the ice, followed by the rum and then the Club soda. Stir and serve.

Making the second Mojito is tricky. What I do is grab a second glass, do my muddling and then pour in the ice and mint leaves from my first drink, add some more fresh ice and the rest of the ingredients. It helps to have a dishwasher.

Refreshing and enjoyable on a hot afternoon. Almost goes down too well.