Rum: Beyond pirate swill

No region does rum better than its birthplace—the Caribbean, said Jeff Berry in Saveur. There was a time when all rum exported to the U.S. was for mixing, but sipping rums are gaining converts. Like scotch or tequila, well-made rum offers a “spectrum of flavor profiles to explore.”

Dos Maderas P.X. 5+5 ($40). This mix of Bajan and Guyanese rums ages five years in the Caribbean and five more in Spain in sherry casks, creating a “bewitching blend” of clove, pipe tobacco, espresso, tawny port, and orange.

Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica ($29). This is how rum tasted before industrialized production—“peaty and peppery with a whiff of roasted chestnuts and spiced apple.”

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Neisson Réserve Spéciale ($65). “Butterscotch and almond predominate” in this well-balanced rum, whose hue evokes “late-afternoon sunlight.”