It’s not explicitly clear that this is the same company, recipe, facility or really anything to be tied to Andrew Cabot. (Quick Research Break) Ahh, it’s the ancestor of the current owner – okay that’s enough. Sadly if we had to sum up this rum that phrase ‘that’s enough’ is oddly poetic.
There’s no other way to say this but plainly – this is not a good rum. It unlike some of late isn’t suffering from the issue of all sweet or too much heat (although this ain’t smooth). There is just simply no good aspect about this, it’s not great tasting, smelling, value, or smoothness. Couple that with their text and it’s not even terribly honest.
What they Say: “Andrew Cabot (1750-1791) was a merchant and rum distiller who became one of the most successful American privateers. He was said to be uncommonly clever and an astute judge of people and situations. Whether smuggling molasses past British patrols or prizing their ships, Cabot was a true American.
Hard work and dedication are put into every batch. Each drop of Privateer rum is made from scratch in Ipswich. We take our time to allow this silver rum to ripen in neutral vessel before bottling to achieve complex and concentrated flavors. Distilled from cane.
Best Ingredients. Best Practices. Never Sweetened. Never Filtered.”
Taste: 4.0 – It starts off more like a creamy vodka or gin with a bit of citrus. Overall not great though.
Aftertaste: 3.5 – On the back end it’s more of the same twinged with a cheap alcohol taste. While as a rum it certainly has some character to make it distinct from other silver rums it’s not by virtue of being better.
Burn/Smooth: 4.0 – THat is not smooth going down. The weird thing though is you get the sense that chilled it would go down great.
Aroma: 3.0 – That sure smells like some rum, and not a good nice or spiced rum. Ugh.
Honesty: 4.5 – We are suckers for a good smuggler story, especially as it lends credence that the spirit itself shouldn’t be some easy to drink thing, but rougher and tumble. This falls apart in the second half of their literature, but they don’t lose much. Especially that final line killing so much goodwill. The little side literature is simply a daiquiri recipe and their contact info so it’s doesn’t hurt them their either.
Mixability: 4.67
W/ Rocks: 3.5 – That’s really not much better, just a bit colder.
Mojito: 4.5 – It’s an okay mojito, but overall it’s just okay.
Rum and Coke: 6.0 – There’s a unique twist that the flavor of the rum imparts here. While unique it’s not something that stands out as amazing though.
Value: 2.5 – Nope. Sorry but that is simply too much for a rum that’s just barely passable.
Google Shop Average: $28
Website: https://privateerrum.com/
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 2.5
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Metric Score: 21.17/70 |+| Metric Average: 3.74 |+| Reviewer Average: 2.5
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Final Thoughts: Honestly, I would have gone lower in the score if not for the thrill of a smuggler backstory. Overall this fails to deliver and ends up not as some saccharine oddball, but a weird tasting rum nonetheless. This is clearly not made from the best ingredients and practices, and maybe it should be sweetened or filtered – because something about this needs to change.
