I get a ton of question from people who are unsure which Minimalist Tiki rum category a rum belongs in. To assist in this, I’ve created the following flowchart to guide people. Note that the Minimalist Tiki rum categories are very different than than the Smuggler’s Cove Rum categories described in this article: Categorically Flawed: How Rum Categories Hold It Back. Our categories are based around flavor profile and origin, whereas the Smuggler’s categories are more attuned to production choices.
To briefly recap the categories:
- Aged Jamaican Rum (14 out of 30 classic recipes)
- Lightly Aged/Filtered Rum (11 out of 30 classic recipes)
- Moderately Aged Rum (5 out of 30 classic recipes)
- Aged Demerara Rum (5 out of 30 classic recipes)
- Overproof Demerara Rum (4 out of 30 classic recipes)
- Aged Agricole Rum (3 out of 30 classic recipes)
- Bonus: Unaged Jamaican Overproof (0 out of 30 classic recipes)
It’s important to note that the Minimalist Tiki categories do not encompass all rums. There are many rums which fall outside of what Don/Vic/Steve were using during the “golden era”.
For more information on the Minimalist Tiki Rum categories, see a preview of what’s in the book here.
