Captain Morgan Black Spiced Premium Spirit Drink with Caribbean rum, select spices and natural flavouring – to give it its full name.  The spirit drink is aged in Double Charred Blackened Oak Barrels.  It is Blackstrap rum (very thick molasses), Rich Clove Spice and Premium Cassia bark.

Unlike the Spiced Gold this is not readily available in the United Kingdom as yet.  I find this a little strange as even the presentation suggests this is the Captain’s answer to The Kraken (see my review).  It also uses a predominantly black and white colour scheme and the bottle shape is very similar.  It omits the two rings on the neck and gains an upper hand by having a synthetic cork enclosure (pictured below).   The rum/spirit drink is 40% abv.  I have seen this available in the United States  at 47% abv.  I’m not totally sure why such regional difference apply, whether it is down to taste or politics, I really don’t know.  Often rums are stronger in the UK than their US counterparts so its a bit of a conundrum.

I was able to acquire a bottle of this rum (litre bottle always a bonus) in the duty free.  Whilst a few online retailers are starting to stock this rum in the UK it is not yet available everywhere unlike the Golden Spiced or the more traditional Jamaican Rum.  Once again I am at a bit of a loss as to why this is the case.  I paid around £14 for a litre bottle which is pretty cheap for any rum really.

It is quite common to see Captain Morgan rum’s bashed online much like Bacardi.  I concede that I cannot abide their Golden Spiced Rum.  This is partly why I haven’t reviewed it as yet.  I really don’t want to have to taste it again.  Mixing rum seems to be where Captain Morgan want their rums to be – good solid party mixers.  Captain and Cola as they say.

My initial impressions upon nosing is vanilla.  Sadly, this is reminding me of the Golden Spiced.  There is a little hint of clove and nutmeg present on the nose as well but predominantly it is sweet vanilla.  Taken neat the rum is initially very smooth, the vanilla flavour is there but is mixed with a little Black Cherry and caramel.  This is a very sweet drink.  The rum burns a little on exit but after a few sips the burn subsides.  There is a little hint of oaked ageing in the aftertaste but nothing which would suggest that the rum has been aged extensively.  It isn’t a sophisticated sipping experience but it isn’t a hugely unpleasant one either.

In the Captain Morgan flagship Captain and Cola the rum rather disappoints.  You actually have to mix the Black Spiced quite liberally with cola to get any real flavour.  It doesn’t taste as synthetic as The Kraken. I feel the base rum maybe slightly better. Unfortunately, the fact they seem to have applied roughly the same spicing components (mainly vanilla) in this as their Golden Spiced is leaving me a little cold with regard this effort.  It’s not at all offensive.  Its actually very drinkable.  I was just hoping that one day I would get a bit of a surprise from the “Captain”. However it hasn’t happened this time.

It is quite similar to The Kraken.I would rather buy this as it is slightly better balanced and not as sickly sweet.  It’s still very sweet but it has a more authentic young rough rum feel to I, lurking beneath all that vanilla.  It tastes a little like a vanilla and cherry cola.  You kind of still feel you are drinking rum – even if it isn’t exactly what the great Privateers would have drank!