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BOOZE REVIEWS

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10 Cane Rum

This rum touts itself as Rum’s Redemption. I’m not sure about that really, though maybe Rum does need redeeming in some aspects. Unlike other popular spirits there are very few rules or regulations about what can actually be called Rum. Basically it has to be made from sugar or molasses and that’s about it. In contrast, Bourbon has to be made in Kentucky the United States, the mash has to contain at least 51% corn, it must be barrel aged in American Oak for at least 2 years. Even Tequila has regulations. However, Rum’s lack of regulations don’t prevent the existence of high quality rums, nor do other spirits regulations prevent crap from being produced either.

In any case, 10 Cane is different from most rums in that it is made from the juice of the first pressing of the sugar cane stalks immediately after harvest. Most regular rums are made from molasses which is a byproduct of sugar production. So technically 10 Cane seems to be the one breaking from tradition here. 10 Cane is double distilled in copper stills and then aged for a mere six months in oak.

In the end, this rum comes out, in my opinion, tasting more like a whiskey than a rum. Or perhaps a hybrid of the two. It was not a taste I was expecting when I took my first sip. While not a bad spirit, I’m not sure if I would categorize this as a Rum. Actually, now that I really think about it, the flavour is perhaps closer to Cachaça (pronounced: KA-SHA-SA), in fact it seems like that’s really what 10 Cane is. I guess this is an additional testament to Rum’s extremely lax rules about what can and can not be called Rum.

I think in light of this revelation I will go home tonight and make myself a Caipirinha (pronounced: KIE-PUR-REEN-YAH) with 10 Cane.

I’ll let you know the results.

UPDATE: After further experimentation, I’m torn. I compared 10 Cane to another Cachaça that I had and there is a slightly similar flavor but much of the bite of Cachaça is missing from the 10 Cane flavour. It did however make a pretty good Caipirinha. This is either a really good Cachaça or a not all that great Rum. I think I’m going to vote for a really good Cachaça since it is made from fermenting sugar cane juice, which by definition should be Cachça.

I give it 7 of 10 as Cachaça and 3 of 10 as Rum.

Posted Jan 29, 01:24 PM by Matt |

  1. you forgot to give your booze a review. What’s the score?

    — Dan    Jan 29, 07:11 PM    #

  2. Did you read the review? It wasn’t finished yet, that’s why there was no score.

    — Matt    Jan 30, 08:59 AM    #

  3. 10 Cane is great but too expensive. It has a clean but sweet taste. Very smooth with a hint of vanilla. It gave me a great buzz, and no next day bad effects.

    — laser    Feb 21, 07:53 PM    #

  4. Hmm, I don’t think I’d describe 10 cane’s flavor as sweet or smooth. Like I said, I can’t recommend this as a rum.

    — Matt    Feb 25, 08:58 AM    #

  5. bourbon does NOT need to be made in kentucky

    — mary    Mar 27, 12:03 AM    #

  6. Mary, you are correct, Bourbon only needs to be made in the US. Interestingly enough, all but a few brands of Bourbon are made in Kentucky.

    — Matt    Mar 27, 03:10 PM    #

  7. You hit the nail on the head with your review. I’ve tried several of the top rums, including Zaya GR, Black Seal, Mt. Gay, Ron Zacapa Centenario, Sea Wynd, Appleton’s and my favorite sipping rum, Ron Anejo Pampero Anniversario. None of these are anything like 10 Cane.

    My wife is from Brasil, and when I visited there, her father and brothers turned me onto Cachaça, from the cheapest to the most expensive. All of them had a very similar underlying flavor and aroma (raw sugar cane juice) which I liked. It’s cleaner, lighter, refreshing, and very distinctively Cachaça. That’s why I laugh when I read elsewhere that the rum is the brainchild of Hennessy master distiller Jean Pineau. Based on composition, method, taste and color, all Hennessy’s master created was in fact what Brazilians have been enjoying for 100 years, Cachaça, the main ingredient of a Caipirinha.

    I kind of get the feeling Pineau got drunk on Ipanema beach in Rio drinking Caipirinha and suddenly had this magnificent brain fart.

    Here’s how another website describes Pineau’s epiphany: “The rum is the brainchild of Hennessy master distiller Jean Pineau, who was charged by the company five years ago with its creation. The challenge, he says, was quite satisfying: “I control the quality of Cognacs, but I don’t create Cognac. This rum I created.”

    From the start, Pineau’s philosophy was to apply the Cognac makers’ standards of high quality in the choice of raw materials to the making of rum. That led to the use of sugarcane as opposed to molasses and also to the decision to use only the first pressing of the cane, which yields 25 percent less juice, but delivers a higher quality product, according to Pineau.

    He describes a revelation he had regarding rum making on one of his expeditionary trips to the Caribbean: “I sucked on a cut cane in a field and decided that taste of raw sugar juice was what I ultimately wanted to bring to the spirit.” To that end, the choice of the best cane is key to the rum as well as using it when it is as fresh as possible.

    The makers of Brazil’s popular cachaça Pirassununga 51 must be in stitches over the success of 10 Cane. “Leave it to Americans to pay 10X what they need to for something you can get in Brazil for pennies.” That said, I have a litre bottle of 10 Cane on my shelf from Costco today and am enjoying that delicious Cachaça flavor and aroma I love so much. By the way, my bottle of Pampero is empty, so I’ve got to head over to BevMo soon!

    — I married a Brazilian    Jun 16, 09:52 PM    #
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