The 15 Best Rums Under $200 to Try in 2022

1. Ron Zacapa XO

A tremendously layered and complex aged rum designed to pair with dessert or chocolate, this Ron Zacapa bottle is a premier expression.

It’s a sugar cane rum crafted from the company’s finest blends between six and 25 years then aged 2,300 meters “Above the Clouds” to slow down the maturation process.

Ron Zacapa XO uses a “Sistema Solera,” where the liquids are blended as they age in a sequence of barrels that previously stored American whiskey, sherries, and Pedro Ximénez wine before being finished in French oak casks that previously aged Cognac.

The resultant dark brown rum is a tremendous mix of sugar cane sweetness but with the complex notes from being aged in barrels used to house other spirits. If you are a true rum aficionado then this bottle will be most appealing.

2. Flor de Caña 25 Year Old Rum

Flor de Caña (sugarcane flower) is a sustainably produced, gluten-free, and Fair Trade certified premium gold rum.

The Nicaraguan product of a 5th generation family estate, Flor de Caña rum is distilled using 100% renewable energy and is naturally aged without sugar or artificial ingredients.

The Centenario 25 Year Old is a decadent gold rum that matches the beautiful sweet spirit with flavors of caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, and dark chocolate, from its maturation over decades in American oak ex-bourbon barrels.

If you’re looking for a richly flavored and complex rum expression made with a premier ethical focus, then Flor de Caña could be the best rum for you to experience.

3. Mount Gay XO

The bottle that topped our best rums under $100 list certainly deserves its place in this one too. Mount Gay is the oldest rum distillery in the world, having crafted rum in Barbados since 1703.

Mount Gay XO is a small-batch blend of carefully selected fine rums distilled in a traditional copper pot and column stills, then matured between five to 17 years in bourbon barrels, American whiskey barrels, and cognac casks.

XO is an exceptionally round and complex rum, featuring notes of dark chocolate, salted caramel, baked figs, and the spice of cloves in its flavor profile. Mount Gay XO is versatile as well, equally at home served simply with lime juice, or mixed into a classic rum punch or Mai Tai cocktail.

4. Gosling’s Papa Seal Single Barrel Bermuda Rum

Named Papa Seal to depict “the father of all rums,” this beautiful dark rum is hand-bottled and hand-labeled, with the production only coming from 12 individual barrels of the finest Gosling’s liquid.

Papa Seal is pot and column distilled from molasses, blended, and then aged for over 15 years in hand-selected, once-used bourbon barrels with a medium char that has been allowed to age in the salty humidity of Bermuda’s sea air.

Papa Seal’s dark copper color belies a harmonious and mellow sweetness that carries the flavors of rich sugar, leather, and hints of caramel whiskey.

5. Diplomático Single Vintage

The best rum under $200 from the popular Venezuelan brand, the Single Vintage expression is distilled in vintage copper pot stills then aged in bourbon and single malt whisky casks for 12 years.

After undergoing the aging process, the rum is blended carefully to obtain the structure and taste it needs to thrive before the rum spends a further year being finished in Spanish sherry casks.

While not quite as good as the Diplomático Ambassador bottle, this Single Vintage expression is still a top drawer edition of quality dark rum from arguably the world’s most reliable rum brand.

6. El Dorado 21 Year Special Reserve Dark Rum

This bottle of 21-year-old dark rum is arguably the finest example of Demerara rum you’ll find available for public purchase.

The rum is derived from sugar cane juice grown along the Demerara River. All Demerara rum is distilled in Guyana, regardless of where it may be aged and bottled (with plenty of this happening for brands elsewhere in the world).

El Dorado is sweet with a natural sugar flavor that contrasts the brilliant notes of natural oak, vanilla, and spice that are layered delicately through the liquid.

A fantastic spirit for the genuine rum lover or as a gift for collectors wanting a touch of the unique.

7. Bacardi Gran Reserva Limitada

This premium rum expression from one of the world’s most beloved brands mixes some of Puerto Rico’s finest aged rum before it’s aged for 12 years in oak.

Every bottle of Bacardi Gran Reserva Limitada carries the signature of the Maximo Maestro de Ron Bacardi, before being individually marked with its blending batch, bottling date, and bottle number.

Bacardi Gran Reserva Limitada features a clean oak barrel flavor with distinct woody, vanilla, and toasted almond notes. Hints of butterscotch and dried fruit give way to a long, dry finish.

Bacardi Gran Reserva Limitada is a standout sipping rum for you to add to your home bar and a great option that fits right in the middle of the sub $100 market.

8. Holmes Cay 15 Year Belize Rum

If you are after a unique and powerful expression of sipping rum then this bottle from Holmes Cay certainly fits the bill.

Tropically aged for 15 years in ex-Bourbon casks, the 100% column still rum is bottled in Belize and made available for sale from only four casks.

It’s bottled at a sweet yet compelling 61% ABV, and with no sugar, color, or other flavors added, it’s almost healthy.

9. Plantation Rum XO 20th Anniversary

This XO 20th anniversary expression is a tremendous rum to savor from the craft distillery that also makes an interesting variety of rums tied to individual Caribbean Islands, and the always interesting Reverend Stiggins Pineapple Fancy.

Plantation Rum’s celebratory XO expression is initially American oak barrel aged in Barbados, then sailed across the ocean in barrels to the southwest of France for further maturation in small Ferrand French natural oak casks.

The “double aging” process imparts incredible smoothness creating a palate of dark chocolate, vanilla, ripe banana, roasted coconut, and a hint of tropical fruit.

10. Santa Teresa 1796 Solera Rum

Santa Teresa 1796 is a super premium rum from the Hacienda Santa Teresa in Venezuela, where the Spanish Solera Method – the liquid is blended gradually using rum of different ages – is used to create a balanced and enjoyable bottle at a brilliant price point.

This smooth and sweet dark rum is great for use in making a traditional rum cocktail – such as a mai tai or rum punch – or as a sipping rum for relaxing by the side of the pool on a warm summer’s day.

11. J.M Rhum Agricole

Notable on this list for being the only white rum, Rhum J.M is Rhum Agricole from the French Isle of Martinique.

Rhum Agricole is the French term for sugarcane juice rum rather than molasses, which is protected by designation by French law.

What makes it the best rum for making a mai tai or daiquiri – and more expensive than the typically cheaper white rum expressions – is that the terroir of Martinique creates a truly unique and interesting personality that comes through in the bottle.

If you are a rum enthusiast with a sense of quality and individuality, then buying a bottle of Rhum J.M is highly recommended.

12. Hampden Estate Overproof Rum

A Jamaican rum with an old school mentality – part of a collaboration between Hampden Estate and Italian bottler Velier – this bottle packs a punch at 60% ABV and is wild fermented in a single pot still.

A traditional Jamaican rum with no flavors or colors, Hampden Estate Overproof is a rich and complex drop filled with elements of dried fruit, vanilla, brown sugar, and hints of classic Caribbean spice.

Hampden Estate may lack the profile of some of its contemporaries but it has the bona fides to make any salty pirate pay attention.

13. Appleton Estate 21 Year Old

The rums that make up 21 Year Old Appleton Estate Jamaican rum are hand-selected for the unique character, flavor, and sensorial bouquet they bring to the blend.

Two decades in barrel sees the sugars reigned in with spicy oak overlaying the flavor of raisins, dates, and light molasses.

The quintessential Jamaican rum, the 21-year-old has a tremendously deep dark brown color and a wonderful nose that greets you with sap-like brown sugar, oak, green apples, sweet tobacco, and dark chocolate.

It offers a drier finish with lingering traces of muscat wine, rancio and all-spice woven through the aftertaste.

14. Facundo Exquisito

The standalone Facundo collection is a tribute to Bacardi founder Don Facundo Bacardi Masso.

Facundo Exquisito is a bold dark rum marrying those aged seven years with matured rums aged 23 years in oak barrels and finished in sherry casks. After maturation, the rums are blended, transferred, and stored in sherry casks to rest for a minimum of one month.

Exquisito combines the sharper, fruitier notes of its seven-year-old rums with smoke and spices from the Anejo rums. It features Madeira, vanilla, blackened fruit cake, and brown sugar, balanced by spice hints of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove.

15. Foursquare Shibboleth Barbados Single Blended Rum

As part of their Exceptional Cask Collection, Foursquare makes some amazing craft rum expressions that are either limited releases or distilled with a focus on terroir and Barbadian personality.

As the Shibboleth label demands, “it is Barbados Rum, if and only if, it is fermented, distilled, and matured in Barbados.”

The Shibboleth is a blend of rums distilled in the copper double retort pot and continuous twin column still then aged for a total of 16 years in ex-bourbon casks.

It offers tropical fruit flavors such as guava and melon combined with the caramel of whisky barrel aging.