“The best rum in this world” proclaims the 30′s style label.  Finest Old Demerara from Guyana.  This is a blend of 7 dark rums aged in Guyana for at least 3 years.  According to the bottle this is a naval style rum.  This rum (and seemingly the bottle) has been produced since 1930.

I bought this rum on a trip to Sainsburys.  It had  couple of quid off so was £18 rather than £20.  To be honest the bottle is a little uninspiring, which is why I had previously overlooked it.  It’s a standard entry-level metallic screw top bar bottle.  The labelling is a little kitsch but I don’t really think it will be doing its sales much good.

Skipper Rum is bottled in Glasgow and despite its claims of being a naval style rum I’m expecting a rum similar to OVD. 

As with Demerara rums the rum is slightly thicker in its consistency than a similarly aged caribbean golden/amber style rum.  It’s also a lot darker, though not quite as dark as OVD.  It is similar in appearance to Lambs Navy Rum, so maybe it will taste similar to that and indeed be a Naval style rum.

Upon sipping I’m getting quite a bit of sweetness, but I really don’t think rums like these are designed as sippers.  It’s a little rough but nothing to out of the ordinary at this kind of price point.  Mixed with a cola it froths a little, not as much as some Demerara’s though.  The cola definitely makes the taste of the rum come out more.  It tastes nothing like OVD.  The bottle has definitely got it right Naval style.  Unfortunately the naval style of this rum is more in keeping with Lambs than Pussers.  It’s sweet and spicy and you get a taste of raisin in the mix.  Its like a slightly less spiced and sweet version of Lambs.

If you enjoy Demerara rums especially El Dorado rum’s and think Skipper may be a cheaper way of getting a similar taste profile, then don’t bother.  This is nothing like those rums.  Nor is it  very similar to OVD.  It doesn’t have the coffee overtones of that rum. At the time of writing Aldi have a 8-year-old El Dorado Demerara for £19.99.  I know where my money would go, this rum is aged for 3 years so the El Dorado has to be noticeably better.  I prefer my El Dorado 5-year-old to this.

If you love Lambs Navy Rum then I would point you in the direction of Skipper Rum as you will enjoy it. You may even prefer it over Lambs as its slightly less spiced in flavour.