Bacardi Select
Category: Dark
Country: Puerto Rico
Aged: 2-4 years
Alcohol: 40% (80 proof)
Availability: Everywhere
Price: $12-$15 (750 mL)
Appearance (0-5): 4
Aroma (0-25): 10
Taste (0-35): 12
Smoothness (0-10): 4
Body (0-5): 3
Overall Quality (0-20): 7
Machete Rating (0-100): 40
Notes: I had high hopes for Bacardi Select (also known as Bacardi Black, but not to be confused with the 6-year Bacardi Añejo). There were some moderately positive reviews online (mixed in with a number of mediocre reviews) and the bottle looked tempting on the shelves (especially for the discounted price of $9.99). Too bad I had to open it. Liquid is an attractive dark amber. It presents an overpowering aroma of sour fruit and varnish with hints of caramel, molasses and bitters. Sipping this neat is a mistake. Tasting notes of white pepper, sweat, and wood with the harsh, dry finish of cheap white rum. A second taste reveals an extremely faint bittersweet cane. Salty aftertaste. It may have some age, but it lacks maturity. Dropping ice cubes and a splash of water helps, though not much as it simply tones it down to an average young rum taste. But not all is disaster... cutting it with coke (not diet, so as to compensate for the missing sweetness) rounds out the rum a bit and brings the fruit and oak to the forefront. With ginger ale and a squeeze of lemon, it's OK. Adding it as a boat drink floater might be the best way to enjoy this rum as its bitter flavors and dryness make a relatively decent contrast to super-sweet mixes. Bacardi 8 and Bacardi 1873 Solera both blow Select out of the water. I think it aims to be Myers's [sic] Dark but it clearly comes up very short. Even finding it for $10 might not be worth it.
[Follow up: Do not mix this with pineapple juice as the combined taste might be worse than death.]