In this article, we are going to discuss the 5 countries that produce the best rum in the world. If you want to check out our detailed analysis of the global rum market, the most popular rum brand in the world, the recent acquisition in the rum industry, and the rise of alcohol-free rum, head to 12 Countries that Produce the Best Rum in the World.
5. Guyana
Insider Monkey Score: 5
Guyana rums are very fruity and rich, among the fullest in body of all Caribbean rums. The area is known for the famed Demerara River, around which grow the finest sugar canes.
The South American nation’s rums are smoky and flavorful with notes of vanilla, honey, and baking spices. They tend to be thicker than other rums, for a viscous mouth and tongue feel. Most are distilled in wooden coffey and pot stills.
4. Martinique
Insider Monkey Score: 6
Martinique is generally known as a tropical paradise for sun and sea, but the lush, French Caribbean island is also celebrated as a producer of premium quality rum. Like many of its island neighbors, Martinique has deeply rooted tradition in the legendary drink, so much that the locals boast, ‘All roads lead to rhum.’
There are fourteen distilleries in Martinique, and they produce rum from sugar cane juice in several styles. Perhaps the most coveted is the Rhum Vieux or old rum, which ages for at least three years in oak.
3. Barbados
Insider Monkey Score: 6
Often considered the birthplace of rum, Barbados has a rum-making history that dates back to the 17th century. Barbadian rum, known for its smooth and well-balanced flavor profile, is typically aged in oak barrels, which impart a rich, complex character. Mount Gay, the oldest continuously operating rum distillery in the world, produces some of the finest examples of Barbadian rum. The Caribbean nation exported $1.7 million worth of spirit in 2021.
Rums from Barbados are known for being a perfectly balanced blend of pot and column distilled spirits that are aged to highlight both the flavors from the barrel and those from the sugarcane itself.
2. Cuba
Insider Monkey Score: 7
Cuban rum is unrivaled in taste, curation, and reputation. Nicknamed ‘Vitamina R’ by the locals, rum flows across the whole island and is a drink for everyone. Cubans use oak barrels from the United States that were previously used for aging Bourbon as well as those that previously aged Irish whiskey. The flavors from the Bourbon and whiskey seep into the oak and season the rum as it ages.
The culmination of ingredients grown under the Caribbean sun, processes that are safeguarded by trained maestros, and the magic of the island where it is best enjoyed make Cuban rum alluring and irresistible for all.
1. Jamaica
Insider Monkey Score: 8
Today, Jamaica has the most rum bars per square mile in the world and the reputation and standard of its rum is rightly regarded. The style is known to be heavier, owing to the fact that there are more pot stills in Jamaica than any other Caribbean island.
The island nation has the capacity to produce up to 50 million liters of rum annually and Jamaican rums are presently sold in over 70 countries around the world.
Insider Monkey focuses on uncovering the best investment ideas of hedge funds and insiders. Please subscribe to our free daily newsletter to get the latest investment ideas from hedge funds’ investor letters by entering your email address below. You can also take a peek at 20 Most Popular Extreme Sports in the US and 20 Most Feminist Countries in the World.
