Recommend Me Good Rum (For Rum & Coke) That's $20 Or Less

I was recently asked by a friend over Steam what kind of rum to get for his friend for Christmas. His budget is up to about $20 for a bottle and he would like it accessible in a store. I'm not a drinker myself so I had no idea but I wanted to recommend him something other than Captain Morgan. Oh and he says the rum will be used for rum and coke so rum that's good for that I guess.

The best rum is not getting any rum. Tamdhu single-malt is 20 bucks; tell him to get that.

I personally drink some Lime Captain Morgan's. It's cheap and tasty.

You're asking for advice so you can give advice?

Captain Morgan Black is really good and its the smoothest spiced rum I have ever tasted

Appleton Jamaican Reserve is smooth. Buy him a bottle of Crown Royal and tell him to upgrade his "& Coke" drinking experience to something tasty.

@scalpel said:

You're asking for advice so you can give advice?

I suggested doing the research for him because I was curious what Giant Bomb people would say.

If you're mixing it then anything too special is basically wasted anyway so budget shouldn't be a problem. There's nothing wrong really with Captain Morgans, but if your friend is wanting it for a present I'd recommend him that he choose something else just so that it looked more like some effort went in. Saying that though, if it's just to throw at someone for necking then it's all a waste and he should just get something inexpensive.

Now, if he does want something more special I'd suggest looking about for some Plantation Rum.

Malibu and coke is pretty good. Otherwise, Bacardi.

Sailor Jerry's! Has a touch of chocolate to the taste, much nicer than you might think.

Kraken comes in a pretty cool bottle....

I can't stand rum. Most likely because I had the worst hang over of my life drinking it and not a fan of the taste. Which is bad when you live in QLD Australia where Bundaberg rum is the most famous alcohol producer in QLD.

So essentially my advice is drink whiskey.

Sailor Jerrys makes real good R&C. Just don't shoot it. For the love of good don't.

Well... what kind of rum are you looking for? Clear, Dark, Spiced, Flavored (CM Tattoo, Malibu, etc.)?

Personally, I would spend an extra $5 and get a bottle of Bacardi Oakheart. I am not a Rum drinker, but that is best for Rum and Coke. I swear it makes the drink taste like Vanilla Coke / Cream Soda. It is just so damn tasty and smooth.

Mount gay. Better than most and surprisingly cheap.

The other thing (neglected terribly) is: 1) don't use Diet Coke (sheesh) and 2) if you can possibly swing it you should use Coke made with sugar. You can find it around Passover in your standard mega-mart but, lucky for me, one of the Costcos near me carries it year round (imported from Mexico in real glass bottles!)... It's really a different (and much better drink) than one made with HFCS Coke...

Lemon Hart is my fav cheaper rum, don't know the price.

You can't get good rum for $20 but if you're just making rum and coke it doesn't matter at all, you won't notice the quality, really.

Rum and coke is an inherently trashy drink as much I as like them, there's no real "quality" just grab whatever the liquor store has. That's a gettin' drunk beverage and should be treated with the appropriate amount of concern (that is to say not much at all).

@TheSouthernDandy said:

Sailor Jerrys makes real good R&C. Just don't shoot it. For the love of good don't.

Oh but the overproofness is what makes it so good to shoot! I had half a bottle straight, once. Day after that felt like the apocalypse though.

@dudeglove said:

rum is for losers, peach schnapps all the way.

This.

@Doctorchimp said:

Kraken comes in a pretty cool bottle....

This is true. I was drinking Black Heart at a friends last weekend. It's usually that or Kraken. I think they're both around that in price.

@scalpel said:

You're asking for advice so you can give advice?

it's meta.

On topic: Myer's Dark. Tasty goodness.

Sailor Jerry is hard to beat for the money if you are just looking to mix it. Much better than Captain Morgan's.

@Doctorchimp said:

Kraken comes in a pretty cool bottle....

RELEASE THE KRAKEN

Havana Club, unless you're in the USA, in which case it's illegal and forget I said anything...

@Crash_Happy said:

Now, if he does want something more special I'd suggest looking about for some Plantation Rum.

Agreed, one of the best cuba libres I've tasted my entire life used a 5 year old barbados.

if your mixing it with coke you can get away with some pretty bad rot gut

If your friend is asking for under 20$ rum and he intends on mixing it with coke, chances are he won't be able to tell. Just get some bacardi or captain morgan and don't worry too much

Morgan or Nelson. Admiral Nelson's cheap as shit. Drunken Parrots are the way to go too - Mountain Dew (or diet) with rum. So good.

@gla55jAw said:

@Doctorchimp said:

Kraken comes in a pretty cool bottle....

This is true. I was drinking Black Heart at a friends last weekend. It's usually that or Kraken. I think they're both around that in price.

Definitely Kraken for rums and coke, particularly if it's a gift since the recipient might have been apprehensive about drinking black rum, but it goes wonderfully with coke. Cruzan Black Strap is good too, and cheap, but it's harder to find.

If it's a rum and coke it really doesn't matter. Just get something cheap and dig in.

For those saying it doesn't matter, I think there needs to be clarity. A rum and coke can be made two ways.

A) A standard mixed drink. In this case it really doesn't matter if it's top of the shelf or rubbing alcohol.

B) A splash of coke, much like a long island tea is made. In this case, the rum absolutely matters. And in this case if you're doing anything other than Bacardi, you're doing it wrong :).

@Jace said:

For those saying it doesn't matter, I think there needs to be clarity. A rum and coke can be made two ways.

A) A standard mixed drink. In this case it really doesn't matter if it's top of the shelf or rubbing alcohol.

B) A splash of coke, much like a long island tea is made. In this case, the rum absolutely matters. And in this case if you're doing anything other than Bacardi, you're doing it wrong :).

My guess if he's asking for a good rum under $20 he's going down the A) road.

@craigieh28 said:

Sailor Jerry's! Has a touch of chocolate to the taste, much nicer than you might think.

I would vote for Sailor Jerry as well. It is 90 proof so is a bit higher octane than some other spice rums. The original Captain Morgan's is only 70 proof from what I remember.

Grab a handle of Admiral Nelson.