Aged rum holds a special place in the spirit world. Years of mellowing in oak barrels create depth, complexity, and flavors you can’t find in younger expressions. But does enjoying this rich taste have to come at a premium price? Not!
Today, we’re unveiling the secret world of budget-friendly aged rums, bottles bursting with character and flavor that won’t cost you a fortune.
All these expressions can be found at Total Wine & More national stores. You will find the estimated pricing based on different locations. We recommend verifying your favorite store to confirm pricing.
Created in 1862, BACARDÍ Reserva Ocho is a golden, premium, and complex sipping rum made from a blend of rums aged minimum for 8 years to give the rum a smoother, richer flavor.
It begins with a well-rounded scent of apricots, vanilla, and nutmeg, leading to a rounded palate and a long finish. An experience that brings to tasting the rum-making tradition of the Bacardí Family.
Due to history, this rum is perfect for making Cuba Libre. If you want to try it out, please check out this recipe!
Barbancourt 5 Star Reserve Speciale 8 Year Old is a light gold rum created from fermented sugar cane juice, rather than the classic molasses. It is sent directly to the distillery to preserve its freshness and aromatic potential.
In 1862, Dupré Barbancourt created the Barbancourt rum recipe. Since that year, something that guarantees the utmost and consistent quality is excellence as key.
From the Guatemalan landscape, Botran offers Botran Ron Añejo 12 Years, a rum distilled from sugar cane honey using a Column Still at the Industrias Licoreras de Guatemala distillery.
This blend is made from 5 to 12-year-old rum, aged in Ex-American Whiskey, Ex-American Whiskey Medium Toasted, and Ex-Sherry Wine casks, producing a smoky, earthy smoothness tasting experience.
It can be enjoyed neat or in mixed drinks like a classic Cuba Libre.
Chairman’s Reserved Spiced Rum is created by infusing the Chairman’s Reserve Original Rum with “Bois Bandé,” a Caribbean bark, renowned for its aphrodisiac properties.
The rum represents an infusion of indigenous spices and fruits, including cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, vanilla, allspice, lemon, and orange peels.
Its blending process combines Coffey and pot-still rums matured and enhanced with local fruits and spices.
Each batch and type of still is aged individually in ex-Bourbon barrels. Then, they’re combined and rested in oak vats for six months. Local fruits and spices are essential ingredients during this time.
RumX website states the taste profile of the expression is: A festive medley of orange, cinnamon, and nutmeg, Chairman’s Reserve Spiced Original delivers a sweet, complex taste, ideal for holiday cocktails. Strong, spiced aromas lead to a smooth, candy-like finish, perfect for those craving a sweeter, spirited warmth.
Doorly’s XO is distilled from molasses using a combination of Pot and Column Still and aged in Spanish Oloroso Sherry casks within the tropical climate of Barbados. It’s a spirit that exemplifies the island’s rum-making expertise and tradition.
This rum presents a harmonious fusion of tropical fruit, toffee, raisins, and vanilla, offering a complex and smooth-tasting experience with every sip. It pairs perfectly with chocolates and beef.
In 2014 Doorly’s XO won a Gold Medal-winning Spirit in the Los Angeles Spirits Competition due to its exceptional quality.
El Dorado’s 5-year-old rum from Guyana is a crowd-pleaser with its rich flavors of toffee, vanilla, and ripe fruit. It strikes a perfect balance between sweetness and complexity, making it an excellent choice for both sipping and mixing in cocktails.
El Dorado rums are produced to the highest standards and conform to the international regulations on age statements. Therefore, the age on the bottle refers to the youngest rum in the blend, even though the oldest may be many years older.
Kaniche XO, a blend of rums from various Caribbean islands, offers a well-rounded and smooth experience. Expect a symphony of flavors including caramel, toffee, and hints of tropical fruit, all coming together in a delightful harmony.
This Jamaican gem from the Plantation Rum collection combines pot still rums aged up to six years, resulting in a bold and vibrant expression reviving the legendary “rum funk” of traditional Jamaican rums from the 1800s.
From Long Pond and Clarendon distilleries, Plantation Xamayca Special Dry reveals robust notes of black banana and flambéed pineapple, flavors difficult to find in other spirits, turning into an exceptional choice for those seeking a Caribbean taste.
Hailing from Panama, Ron Abuelo Añejo is a value-packed aged rum with a smooth and mellow profile.
This Panamanian masterpiece is crafted from the fermentation of sugarcane molasses and then aged in white oak barrels. A production process that blends over 100 years of rum-making tradition with modernity at the hands of Varela Hermanos.
Ron Viejo de Caldas 8 Year is produced in the upper part of the Río Chinchiná in Colombia.
The spirit is made with spring water extracted from the Pinera, Cristalina, and Guayabal streams, which gives it a distinctive flavor. The aging barrels are crafted from wood sourced from the Colombian White Oak Quercus humboldtii found in the forest. Lastly, the production and preservation process takes place at an altitude of 2,200 meters.
A fusion of Colombian and Spanish ingenuity, offering a unique taste experience with fruity and herbal flavors.
Ron Barceló Imperial from the Dominican Republic is a well-rounded aged rum with a velvety texture.
The aging process could last a decade, surrounded by the best climatic conditions to preserve the quality of its color, flavors, and aromas, extracted from the nectar of the Dominican sugarcane.
Barceló offers a delightful sipping journey through smoky and sweet ingredients, a heritage of Dominican rum culture.
Awarded in the London Spirits Competition, Ron Carupano 6 Reserva Especial comes from Venezuelan lands to delight your palate.
Ron Carúpano is located in the Hacienda Altamira del Valle (Macarapana-Carúpano, Sucre State), where the breeze from the Caribbean Sea creates the perfect climate mix, intensifying and optimizing the aging process.
Made with Carúpano’s spring water and aging in American oak casks, this rum offers an amber liquid with fruity and floral aromas.
Stade’s Rum Barbados Bond No. 8 is a fantastic value rum from the birthplace of rum itself. It will take you to the beginning of the golden era of rum-making.
This rum is a unique blend that combines aged column still distillate with a high-ester rum, bringing an amazing fusion of tropical, smoky, and sweet flavors
The spirit undergoes a week-long fermentation process, further contributing to its complex flavor profile.
In 2022, the San Francisco World Spirits Competition awarded Stade’s rum with double gold certification.
We hope you enjoy this list! So, feel free to come back to this article whenever you need a premium budget-friendly rum shopping list!
Some mentioned brands are also part of TheRumLab experiences, check them out here!
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