These 8 New Rums Showcase A Spirit That Deserves More Love

I've gone on record saying that this is the year rum finally has its breakout moment since about, oh, 2011. And needless to say, I've been wrong every time. While tequila has ascended from bottom-shelf purgatory into the pantheon of luxury spirits, whiskies from all over the world have had their moment in the spotlight, and amaros become hipper with every passing year, rum just keeps limping along, its sales by volume slowly ebbing, the old tropes about how it's all sickly sweet, or little more than a mixer for frozen party drinks, stubbornly enduring.

There is, however, a ray or two of sunshine amidst the gloom. While rum sales in the U.S. by volume hit a two-decade low in 2025 , according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. (DISCUS) , sales of super-premium rum — the sector that includes a good chunk of the more interesting, esoteric, and in my opinion delicious rums beloved by rum nerds and spirits aficionados — is increasing . So while people may be drinking less rum in general, those who are still drinking it are drinking more of the good stuff.

And what is the good stuff, you might ask? Well, you've come to the right place! Sales figures aside, rum is a thrilling category, with great ones arriving from all corners of the globe. The list that follows includes just a few of my recently released favorites, but hopefully it'll be enough to pique your curiosity and, with any luck, get you to do a deeper dive into the world of rum and cane spirits.

MOUNT GAY Exceptionally Aged 25 Year Old (47% ABV, $199). It only took 323 years, but Mount Gay — the oldest continually operating rum distillery in the world — has finally released a rum with an age statement. In fact, they have two, a 15 year old and a 25 year old. The 25 was distilled in 1999, on the watch of master blender Jerry Edwards; it was overseen in the interim by his successors, Allan Smith and the current master blender, Trudiann Branker . While most Mount Gay expressions are blends of pot and column still rums, this is all column still. Not that you'd know from tasting it — while column still rums are generally lighter, a quarter-century in the barrel has imparted a lot of viscosity and richness. At 47% ABV, it's also a slightly higher proof than Mount Gay's typical 43%. Dark chocolate, oak, molasses, a hint of leather… autumnal flavors that sip beautifully no matter the season. The 15 rivals the 25 in complexity and is a little more approachable, but for special occasions, or at the end of a great meal (which is a special occasion in itself), the elder sibling really hits the spot.

DENIZEN Wanderer Series: Jamaican Rum Finished In Port Casks (54% ABV, $78).Denizen got its start in 2010 with an attempt to bottle the perfect mai tai rum. Did they succeed? I can't say definitively, but I respect their audacity in trying, and I've enjoyed their Merchant's Reserve expression, in mai tais and otherwise, for many a year. Their latest bottling, and the first in the ongoing Wanderer series, is a blend of four Jamaican rums, distilleries unknown (though there are only six in the country), aged for eight years and then finished in port casks for three months. Port cask finishes can overwhelm a spirit pretty quickly, and I'm happy to say this one doesn't — it brings dark fruit and chocolate notes to the party without overshadowing the rum. Which doesn't have a whole lot of the funk, or hogo, for which Jamaican rum is known. But it's big and flavorful, with notes of caramel and baking spices; a little water brings up the port influence somewhat. Well worth your time.

BRUGAL Colección Visionaria Edición 03 (45% ABV, $70). The Colección Visionaria series was, for me, a "wait, they're doing what now?" kind of rum. The Dominican distillery's " Aromatic Toasting Method " of aging rums involved toasting French oak casks with stuff in the casks while it was being toasted, and then aging the rum in those casks. The "stuff "was, for the first two editions, cacao beans and coffee beans, respectively. The idea was that it would infuse some of the flavor It sounded pretty gimmicky… but then I tasted Edición 02 and was blown away by how beautifully, naturally and subtly the coffee made its presence felt in the rum. For the third in the series, they've toasted the casks with coconut husks. The coconut definitely comes through in notes of sweet vanilla, melon, and, well, coconut. But the toasting also gives it a nice peppery spice and notes of burnt sugar, a little like a créme caramel. No artificial flavoring, nothing infused, just a really tasty rum with an interesting and innovative aging technique. This is said to be the last in the Colección Visionaria series, but I hope they change their minds.

HOLMES CAY The Rarest : Fiji 2004 21 Years Old (58% ABV, $280). In 2020, Holmes Cay, a fledgling independent bottler of rums from around the world, released their second bottling, a 16 year old single cask molasses-based rum from Fiji laid down in 2004. I'd never tried a rum from Fiji, which only has one active distillery. But I was an instant convert, both to Fijian rum and to Holmes Cay. After trying a bunch of other examples, I was even more impressed with Holmes Cay's cask selection, naming it one of the ten best rums of the 21st century to date . Now, Holmes Cay is releasing its last cask of the '04 batch, aged an additional six years in the UK and (mostly) New York State. The original is a big, smoky, pungent beast, with undertones of vanilla and tropical fruit. The extra aging has mellowed it somewhat, with more pronounced sweetness and even light floral notes up front. But the big beast is still lurking, tasting like what I've described to friends as "burning tires… but the most delicious burning tires you've ever tried." An absolute classic, limited to 192 bottles. And once it's gone, it's gone for good.

THE LAST DROP 25 Year Old Caroni Trinidad Rum (65.2% ABV, $2,400). Caroni is one of the hottest rum brands in the world… even though the distillery has been closed for more than 20 years. I suppose that kind of scarcity is part of why the rums are so sought after by rum nerds, collectors and the like. But even at this late date, new, ever-older Caroni bottlings are still being released, which makes it what's called a ghost distillery. And a very tasty ghost at that. Some folks think the Caronis being released now have aged too long and as a result, the quality isn't what it used to be. But I would put up this example, distilled from casks laid down in 1997 and '99 and blended and bottled by the rare spirits sleuths at The Last Drop, as proof that really old Caroni is still pretty magical. Age has mellowed this one, and Caroni's signature smoky, tar-like notes are somewhat muted, leaving lovely vanilla, spicy ginger, coconut, a little tropical fruit, and a touch of peppery spice in their stead. At 130 proof and change, this packs an alcoholic whomp to go with the sweeter flavor profile, and the combo is irresistible. A terrific sipper and, while it's not the cheapest Caroni on the market, if you've got the loot you won't be sorry.

BEENLEIGH Velier Magnum Series 8 Y.O. 2015 (60% ABV, $250).From Velier and PM Spirits , purveyors of some of the coolest rums around, comes the Magnum Series , a collab with Magnum Photos , which represents some of the world's top photographers. The first edition celebrated the late Elliott Erwitt , and this, the second edition, features the still-alive Alex Webb . Attractive as the label may be — it features a striking photo by Webb from 1979 — the rum is our focus of interest here. Beenleigh isn't quite a household name in the States, but it's Australia's oldest licensed distillery, having made rum in Queensland from locally sourced molasses (which itself is made from locally grown cane) since 1884. This beauty, aged in ex-bourbon barrels, puts lie to the myth that rum is overly sweet. This is earthy and a little leathery, with notes of honey, tobacco, and burnt caramel. It's an elegant sipper that would impress a whiskey snob without tasting like a whiskey. Use it to convert the snob in your life — or better yet, forget about the snob and keep it for yourself.

AMERICAN CANE Banter White Rum (40% ABV, $30). As big a rum fan as I am, I rarely get excited by an 80-proof, unaged bottling. Two things piqued my interest about this one. First, it was awarded a 98/100 at the 2026 International Wine & Spirits Competition , one of only two rums to receive that high a score. And second, the woman behind the Louisiana-based American Cane is none other than Maggie Campbell , who previously did some really terrific work at Privateer and Mount Gay. From what I can tell, she's in more of an executive role here, but she did blend this combo of Jamaican and Dominican molasses and cane juice rums, distilled in both pot and column stills. American Cane's mission is to establish a new beachhead for American rum, including distilling its own stuff, but this is a terrific debut. Clean, dry, with a lot of minerality and elegant, understated vanilla and almond notes, this makes a hell of a daiquiri and is also delish chilled or on the rocks with a squeeze of lime.

PROBITAS Green Label (57% ABV, $35). "White rum" doesn't really mean anything, encompassing everything from unaged, smack-you-on-the-side-of-the-head overproof Wray & Nephew from Jamaica to aged-and-filtered, almost vodka-like Bacardi from Puerto Rico. But Probitas White Rum , a collaboration between two of the world's finest rum distilleries — Foursquare in Barbados and Hampden Estate in Jamaica — featuring un-aged and lightly aged (two years) pot and column still rums, is a beauty no matter what you call it. Their new Green Label expression may look like an aged sipping rum, but it's roughly the same blend, and the same age, as the White Rum. The dark color comes from caramel coloring made by Richard Seale , the master distiller/master blender/mastermind at Foursquare. As advertised, it does not add any sweetness to the finished product, but it does add a noticeable dry, burnt caramel flavor to the lightly citric, slightly funky tropical fruit notes. That plus the high proof (roughly a navy-strength 114) means that it's not necessarily a sipper for everyone, though I'm enjoying the heck out of it neat and with a rock. But in cocktails, from daiquiris to tiki drinks to rum Old Fashioneds, it's a great addition to the shelf. And the price is right, too.

This article was originally published on Forbes.com