Rum Review: Bacardi Gold, Anejo, Select and 8 Year

[Capn Jimbo]

The long awaited Bacardi Smackdown...



Bacardi has become the company we love to hate.

Whether it's their bullying sales tactics, politics and political manipulations, or their demand for acres of shelf space that excludes our ever dwindling sipping rums... Bacardi is rarely praised for being much more than the party rum of choice. Visit most websites and you'll find Bacardi is presented as the whipping boy of rum. Few review sites bother with any Bacardi's other than the 8 year.

Let's call this The Bacardi Bias. It really is. And we must admit that we too have participated in this bias, although to be fair, more on political grounds. I recently noted that Bacardi, Malibu and Capn Morgan (and the house brands) captured ALL the prime space. Out of 5 shelves (with the fifth being well above eye level and hard to reach), these three companies owned all the prime shelves (2, 3 and 4) and half the 5th shelf, with house brands bringing up the bottom, or rear if you prefer.

That's 87% of the available space, and 100% of the prime space. The ever fewer fine rums from smaller distillers are relegated to less than 2/3 of the hard-to-see-or-reach 5th.


But then I read RT's recommended book...

“Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba". In this terrific, 400 page history I came to learn of Bacardi's amazing history and of a family commitment to quality and consistency. Facundo Bacardi and the continued involvement of generations of his family is important. By remaining privately owned and managed by family and trusted employees, Bacardi achieved tremendous success. I was especially impressed by the family commitment to great experimentation and every possible detail to technical excellence, but without losing the art of it all.

With that in mind, I decided to break the Bacardi Bias and visit - for the first time for moi anyway - the basic line of golden Bacardis. These were to include the Gold, Anejo, Select, Solera and 8 Year, though the Solera is simply not to be found in South Florida of all places.

The reviews are an amalgam of Sue Sea's and my own notes. We begin:


Bacardi Gold Rum

It is said the Bacardi Gold (formerly called "Oro", for gold) is actually a blend of 14 rums of one to two years of age. If so, it makes one think of Johnny Walker Black. All the Bacardi's experience some degree of the proprietary charcoal filtering that Facundo Bacardi first developed, thus all exhibit exceptional clarity. The Gold presents as well, a light gold.

The opening nose was more of a light vanillan (Sue Sea, or SS) and a bit of caramel and a light and pleasant nutty vanillan for me. The palate opens with a light sweet and smooth honey vanilla, with hints of nuts and butterscotch but more a growing spicy heat. Think ginger, leading to a spicy hot white pepper finiish. Sue Sea found the mid palate hard to place but lightly pleasant, and a finish that was a single dimensional reflection of the aroma.

In sum, the Bacardi Gold is easily sippable, like a San Pablo. It is young and it presents that way, but its smoothness is notable. Sue Sea feels the Bacardi Gold would compliment any of the milder mixed drinks without overpowering them. Do not hesitate to enjoy an easy summer sipper with or without a bit of ice.

Key words: light, simple but pleasant, smooth.

Rating (10 is best): Sue Sea - 7, Me - 6.


Bacardi Anejo Rum

Per Bacardi "Originated in 1862, BACARDI® Añejo rum is the original, mixable light-bodied, premium aged rum. Aged for up to three years...". The color is now a brilliant amber.

The Bacardi Anejo was really quite a surprising young rum. The opening nose is much more mature than the Gold, and we are now into true sipping territory. Sue Sea's open featured classic rum's leather, with vanillan tinged light molasses, and a sense of astringency for a baked and savory impression. Vanillan was my first impression, over classic deep orangey leather, and brown sugar. Rich. The medium bodied palate opened with a lightly sweet honey and vanillan. For Sue Sea the Anejo moved into caramel, butterscotch and a light medium citrus orange - reflected by my impressions of classic rum tarry leather and deep orange.

This is classic. The end palate warmed up in the expected Cuban fashion to a slightly coating deep sweet heat of a black pepper finish that reflected the entirety of this rum's character and lingered nicely. In comparison to the Gold, the Anejo is notably more classic, richer, and sophisticated. Its stands quite nicely on its own and need not be mixed. Still Sue Sea notes it would be wonderful for baking, punch, eggnog or as a notable mixer.

Key words: richer, deeper, sophisticated, absolutely classic Cuban

Score (10 is best): Very solid 7.


Bacardi Select Rum (aka Bacardi Black)

Per Bacardi "BACARDI® Select is aged upwards of four years to create a medium full-bodied blend with aromatic impressions of tropical fruits, apricots, plums and bananas. It has a continuous woody finish with hints of vanilla. Bacardi Select is the richest spirit produced by the Bacardi distilleries" This rum, the Bacardi Select - unlike all the rest - cannot be described as "brilliant". It can be described as dark however; indeed it has also been sold as "Bacardi Black". The color is a solid mahogany.

Based on the stated age "upwards of four years" and aromatic description, one would expect the Select to be a rich step upward from the Anejo. One would be wrong. It headed downhill immediately, from the opening nose.

Both Sue Sea and I had exactly the same unidimensional impression of Bacardi Select's nose: a dominant sour molasses. Think sauerkraut or asparagus. Let's be honest, no rum - indeed not any spirit - turns mahogany from aging. Such a phony color results only from extra E-150 or more likely for a rum that exclaims its darkness - molasses. This is also true for most of the so-called dark rums like Black Seal, Cruzan Navy, or Meyers's Original. All were designed as floaters, or in the case of Gosling's Black Seal, ideal in their signature Dark 'N Stormy.

But not for a sipper.

Back to the nose which opened with sour molasses, over a distant deep leather. The early palate is equally surprising or perhaps not, with a sort of coke syrup and a full bodied sweetness, transitioning back to that sour molasses leather, and yes Facundo, a sense of raisin and just a bare hint of overripe banana. The palate concludes with a slow growing and glowing mouth heat and smothering clove finish.

In sum, the Bacardi Select borders on syrupy, with a strange sweetness that the diminished heat fails to balance anyway. It is vaguely possible that some of you may like this rum, but it starts negatively, and remains a choppy experience. We sincerely tried to like this rum, but sorry. A loser.

Key words: dark, thick, syrupy, smothering, medicinal MOLASSES!

Rating (10 is best): Sue Sea - 6 for mixing, Me - 5.


Bacardi 8 Year

And back again to Bacardi 8 Year. It seems we have reviewed this rum several times. The 8 year per Bacardi: "BACARDI® 8 is aged for more than eight years in carefully selected oak barrels. After aging it is blended to perfection featuring notes of prunes, apricots, nutmeg and vanilla over a clean woody background of oak". A tidbit: the 8 year was considered private stock for the family, but finally was released with a sherry barrel finish as a limited edition for around $400. It was so well received that the 8 Year as we know it was then put into wide release.

Bacardi 8 Year is simply a classic Cuban rum. The color is a brilliant amber and finally, the thin green edge of honest aging. The opening nose is pure rum: orange leather, rich, with vanillan, butterscotch and caramel. The palate entry is lightly sweet and then proceeds with complete consistency to a lightly sweet and classsic Cuban black pepper finish. This is a quality classic Cuban style rum from start to finish. Bacardi 8 Year is all about balance, harmony, and a smooth and seamless development.

At this point pulling out the reference rums of Ron Matusalem and Seale's Ten Year was mandatory, with the Bacardi 8 Year showing adequately but with less complexity.

Score (10 is best): Sue Sea - 8, Me - very strong 7.


Summary

We are glad we decided to break through the Bacardi Bias and give these four brown rums a fair and unbiased chance. We were duly impressed by the Gold, the Anejo and the 8 Year. We were duly unimpressed by the Select, which has clearly been modified as a mixed drink floater, for which it may suffice. The Gold would make a delightful light sipper, while the Anejo borders on what we call a "dangerous rum" - way too easy and pleasant to drink, while the 8 Year is absolutely solid and classic.

Last, I again note the mysterious absence of the widely promoted "Solera" in South Florida, the American home of Bacardi (Miami). Also excluded was the Superior Blanca - an omission we will soon correct.


Bottom Line:

1. Bacardi sells at price points designed to dominate, from bottom to low middle shelf prices, yet their huge selection of product, backed up by big advertising and pervasive marketing, plus their ability to put huge buying pressure on the retailer allows them to capture prime shelf real estate.

They dominate the middle and even upper shelves, and have forced out or forced off single labels and small lines. Only the Malibus and major house brands share that space.

2. Only the eight year approaches a true sipping rum, with a few of the lines do carry enough wood aging to be effective mixers. The flavored rums are designed as party hearty products based on fleeting but highly promoted, ever changing, ever new flavors. Think my Capn Jimbo’s Batshit Dingleberry.

3. It is fair to say that the Bacardi rums are made with consistent quality as either very young, or with very modest aging. Facundo Barcardi’s original concept was lightness and smoothness, a philosophy that was timely and opened a world market of new drinkers. I believe that philosophy perseveres.

Bacardi is a well done, mass market rum. It is the Honda Civic of spirits.