Rum Review: 10 Cane Rum

The third standard reference style: rum, er rhum, made directly from sugar cane juice or honey, rather than from molasses. To the Haitians and French... toast!
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How do you rate 10 Cane Rum (five is best)?

5
0
No votes
4
2
33%
3
2
33%
2
2
33%
1
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 6

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Capn Jimbo
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Rum Review: 10 Cane Rum

Post by Capn Jimbo »

10 Cane Rum: "Five Cane"

Now I know most everyone has become familiar with 10 Cane, its computer designed bottle, top shelf location, purposely slanted orange label and slick marketing ("...historically cane is harvested in bundles of 10".) Uh-huh. I don't like rhum by regulation (AOC) and I certainly reject rhum by advertising agencies. But I digress. Is 10 Cane an agricole of distinction? The envelope please...

Sue Sea:
We were tasting Oronoco when our dear friend Chef Mike presented us with a snifter of 10 Cane, so we had a chance to compare and contrast.

Cane's aroma is light - reedy, grassy - like straw. Upon reflection I picked up a bit of rice mat like St. James Ambre. There was a noticeable alcohol aroma. Its body was light and the 10 Cane remains consistent, tasting of alcohol and reflecting the aroma, with perhaps a faint touch of anise. The finish was peppery, with a lingering warmth that I liked. Like St. James Rhum Ambre, I think that 10 Cane would accompany asian food.
Me:

We'd just returned to the world famous Bahia Mar Hotel in Fort Lauderdale where we'd been treated by Chef Mike to a couple snifters of hard to find Oronoco (see review). Upon our return it was our goal to re-review the Oronoco (in a vain attempt to confirm or deny reviews finding vanilla as a primary note). Denied. Any sense of vanilla, if at all, is ultralight and fleeting.

Whilst performing our duties, Chef treated us to his personal favorite, the 10 Cane of this review. This was especially providential as (a) I had no intention of buying such a marketed product and (b) I wasn't paying, lol. Thanks, Chef!

Sue Sea is right on; however (as with Oronoco) I detected a high, light "sweety reedy" aroma. Color is a very light straw. The taste remains entirely consistent - clean, alcohol, lightly sweety reedy. 10 Cane ends with a nice warm and peppery finish.

Still, in sum the 10 Cane by Moet Hennessy is nothing special, has little complexity and hardly justifies its $35 price. And you need to like alcohol.

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

***********

Special Note: I've heard (that's hearsay folks) that 10 Cane's sales have been disappointing, so Moet Hennessy has reformulated it (keep in mind when reading older reviews - ours was written 3/22/2008.)

Even Later Note: Recently spotted this rum being sold at $19.95 at a number of local stores. Either this was a rare special, or "10 Cane" is about to suffer the same fate as "Tommy Bahama" - the bargain bins.
Last edited by Capn Jimbo on Wed May 26, 2010 12:19 pm, edited 5 times in total.
Garick
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Location: Colorado Springs

Post by Garick »

I just found this on sale for $20. Like others, I had no interest at $35, but at 20, I figured I'd give it a shot. Meh. It's not bad, and if there are any particular flavors (other than alcohol) that turn you off, you are safe from them here. There's not much to it, though. It reminded me of a good vodka, with a hint of sunshine and sugar.
Cheers,

Garick
RT
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Location: Erie PA

Post by RT »

I'm starting to see some different 10 Cane bottles in the stores. Taller and skinnier (still square) and the rum is a very light copper color, as opposed to the old straw color.

Since I really disliked the old stuff for it's lack of flavor, I have not summoned the courage to buy the new yet. Anyone else tried it yet? Comments?
Students of the cask, reject naught but water. -Charles Gonoud, Faust Act 2
NCyankee
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Post by NCyankee »

I didn't love this for the $22 I paid for my first bottle, just so many rums I would rather have in that price range - but I just bought another for $12 at Walmart in Orlando at which price I would say it is an outstanding bargain.
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