Welcome to Yo Ho Ho, NABOR!

My Scale for Rating Rum Keep in mind as you read my reviews and ratings that I'm giving you my opinions from a unique perspective. So here's that view of rum that impacts my ratings.

1. I really, really don't like spiced or flavored rum.

2. I've discovered a preference for aging that transcends price.

3. Too much alcohol or too much of a burn straight up hides the quality of rum.

4. I'm surprisingly unswayed by others' opinions of rums, but I am driven to try rums about which others rave.

5. I gave up trying and rating cheaper rums with the exception of some novelty rums.

6. A typical tasting is both straight up and with Diet Coke.

7. I'm not much of a drinker. I don't have more than two drinks in an evening. So I really savor my rum and Diet Cokes.

My Rating Scale 1 to 10, Worst to Best No quibbling over decimal points; although, I have gone back and changed ratings--and reserve the authority to do so again.

The lowest three ratings are just rather poor rums that I don't like.
1 = Pour it out. 2 = Rub it on. 3 = Give it away.

The next three ratings mix with my Diet Coke, and I can be polite about them in company.
4 = Mix it very well. 5 = Mix it. 6 = Accept the gift, but don't regift.

The 7's are a conundrum. They knocked on the door, but the knock on them is typically too much alcohol bite.
7 = Don't turn it down.

These are the rums I hope to get when dining out or in a bar.
8 = Put it on the Top Shelf. 9 = Write it at the Top of the List.


These rums are so far above the others that everyone who tastes them instantly realizes they are special.
10 = Mark it as the Ultimate Rum.

Value Ratings The value ratings are calculated by squaring a rum's rating and dividing by the price for a 750 ml bottle. The very expensive ones don't compete on value. The really bad ones can't overcome their 1 or 2 ratings. This helps find the 8's and 9s that deliver the best taste for the money.

Saturday, April 7, 2012


What Matters in Rum Ratings
Most people like their own creations.  That’s the way I am about these ratings and descriptions on www.YoHoHoNABOR.blogspot.com.   Sure, there are some rather sophisticated rum ratings and websites out there by individuals and panels of credentialed experts, but they typically include too many rums I can’t find at my local liquor stores.  Then there are websites with rums described only with standard marketing blurbs and photos, but nothing really personal about how the rum enhanced someone’s vacation or whether the rum represents their home town or if the rum brought a smile or grimace to their wife’s face.  Beyond the words, a useful rumsite needs to show the visitor a graphic that depicts each rum’s vitals for ease of comparison.  There needs to be help with selection of the perfect rum for each occasion. 

When I showed this blog to my son, Shelby, he liked the Value Rating.  That conversation also taught me that I needed a visual, graphical way to display value.  That’s how the Rum Meter evolved.  As of this date, the Rum Meter is posted for all rums rated 7 or higher.  After all, if a rum is rated 6 or lower, its value can be misrepresentative.  Would you want to buy a high-value rum that earned that value based more on price than taste? 


So what matters?  Simply, selecting the rum that fits the occasion at the right price.  Oh, yes, and that rum needs to be one that you can actually find.  
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