Which to try after Flor de Cana?

[BaltRumFan]

Hello all. I am working through a bottle of FdC 12yr right now and willl hopefully have a bottle of 18yr next month. So far the 12yr is two thumbs up. I'm considering finishing out the trio and finding a 15yr but I'm torn on which brand to try next.

Leaning towards Appleton Estates from reading a lot of posts here or Mount Gay.

If you had to recommend one for a bottle say in the February timeframe (maybe late January, will depend if I get a FdC 15yr), which would be a good follow up to Flor de Cana?

[Mistahunter]

Do you have specific Appleton or Mount Gay rums on your radar screen? Or are you open to any of their products.

From my perspective, a nice progression from Flora de Cana 12 would be Mount Gay X0 or Appleton 12 year. Both are excellent choices. Personally, I prefer Mount Gay XO...but you do need to try them both at some point.

How do you enjoy your rum?

[BaltRumFan]

Do you have specific Appleton or Mount Gay rums on your radar screen? Or are you open to any of their products.

From my perspective, a nice progression from Flora de Cana 12 would be Mount Gay X0 or Appleton 12 year. Both are excellent choices. Personally, I prefer Mount Gay XO...but you do need to try them both at some point.

How do you enjoy your rum?

So far I had only looked at the Mount Gay XO as a possibility, Appleton Estates hasnt received any research time yet, LOL :) Mount Gay is more widely available it seems in the Baltimore area, where Appleton Estates is more scarce other than the VX. I have found a very nice spirits store recently that seems to be able to order a large selection or rums.

At the moment I've only developed a taste for rum and other spirits straight without ice. Bourbon gave me a 'bad taste' when I tried it on ice and I really felt it took away from the overall flavor. I tried Zaya on ice few months back and it was far better than Bourbon, but found that I still preferred it without ice.

My normal sipping scenario is 1.5oz - 3oz. in a libby stemless wine glass. the wide open top appeals to me. I have a few of the more narrow spirit sippers but haven't found them to be as enjoyable as a wider opening glass.

I do very much enjoy rum and coke but for those I tend to use Myers Dark or Captain's Private Stock for mixing. I've seen many people mention here that they have tried some better end rums in mixed drinks when a bottle was almost empty so I'll have to remember than over the next few months :)

[bobt]

I would second what the gentleman said about MGXO, it is awesome. I have also recently discovered the Matusalem Gran Reserva, possibly the smoothest rum I have ever tasted.

Happy Holidays!

[RonJames]

Balt, the question is if you want to stay with a refined lighter spanish style rum or if you want to go more french agricole or heavy raw English? If leaning towards the heavy route I'd go for the Appleton 12. If agricole I gotz little advise for you as I am still learning these ones. If you want to stick with the spanish Ron Abuelo from Panama is a good one. Or something from Puerto Rico. Problem with PR is that the only sipper that is readily available to most is Bacardi 8, which I love, but might not entertain you as much as the higher end Flor de Cana. If you order online maybe some vizcaya, ron matusalem, Ron atlantico, or something from the dominican republic. Most of the rons/rums from guetemala/venezuela will be heavier and sweeter that the FDCs. Either way pour yourself a glass and watch Ray Lewis light somebody up on a tackle;)

[Arctic Wolf]

Hi

FDC 12 is a fantastic rum! I would recommend a journey south next and try something from Venezuela. Santa Theresa 1796 is a smooth rum with a very unique flavour profile.

Of course Appleton 12 is a great rum to try next as well.

[BaltRumFan]

Hi all! Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas :)

Thanks for the recommendations. It looks like there are a couple votes for the Appleton 12 and Mount Gay XO from the looks of it. I know I can get the Mount Gay and i'll probably take some time to see if i can find the Appleton 12 while I'm off on vacation this week (shameless plug for being off for a week)


Balt, the question is if you want to stay with a refined lighter spanish style rum or if you want to go more french agricole or heavy raw English? If leaning towards the heavy route I'd go for the Appleton 12. If agricole I gotz little advise for you as I am still learning these ones. If you want to stick with the spanish Ron Abuelo from Panama is a good one. Or something from Puerto Rico. Problem with PR is that the only sipper that is readily available to most is Bacardi 8, which I love, but might not entertain you as much as the higher end Flor de Cana. If you order online maybe some vizcaya, ron matusalem, Ron atlantico, or something from the dominican republic. Most of the rons/rums from guetemala/venezuela will be heavier and sweeter that the FDCs. Either way pour yourself a glass and watch Ray Lewis light somebody up on a tackle

RonJames, I've tried St. James XO and Clement for agricoles and loved them. When i found St. James the first time I didn't have any knowledge around agricoles (still don't have a whole lot, LOL) but enjoyed every sip of it.

As for Ray lewis, I must bow my head and admit my football knowledge is rather lacking :) I know 'who' he is from all of the media but I understand nothing in the game of American football

[RonJames]

As for Ray lewis, I must bow my head and admit my football knowledge is rather lacking :) I know 'who' he is from all of the media but I understand nothing in the game of American football

No worries Balt, I don't know the rules that well either. I was actually thinking of you this weekend and thought of another good rum for you. Ron Barcelo Imperial. One of the BEST sippers out there, probably the best bang for the buck. I found it to have a nice faint toasted coconut nuance and it is along the lines of a lighter Ron like FDC