You wouldn’t put out a rum called Afrohead and not put a line art drawing of a woman with a huge, stylized afro on the bottle, would you? Of course not. After years of hand bottling rum in an unnamed bottle featuring only the Afrohead logo, Joe Farrell and Toby Tyler are bringing this Bahamanian rum to the U.S. market officially.

Two expressions are being released, the “Original” reviewed here, which is 7 years old, plus an XO expression, bottled in an opaque decanter, which is 15 years old. Both expressions are crafted from only sugarcane molasses sourced from various farms in the West Indies, using a proprietary Trinidad yeast, and made with neither added coloring nor raw sugar added to the distillate. The rum is aged in used bourbon barrels in the Bahamas and is bottled in Barbados.

Afrohead Original is a well-crafted rum with a somewhat rustic style. The nose is heavily molasses-focused, with ample but not overblown sweetness. Hints of sweet sherry add some nuance, along with notes of marzipan. On the palate, the rum offers a bit of chalkiness on the body, with a rush of sugar right up front. As it fades, the rum gets a bit tougher and shows off more of its skin. As the finish builds, watch for burnt caramel and sooty notes, Cracker Jack, brown butter, and scorched peanuts. These more brooding flavors add layers of complexity, but they also dial back the sweetness a bit. There’s also a bit of a winey aftertaste that lingers on the back of the palate for quite a while.

All told, this is a fine rum with an interesting and compelling character that’s worth sampling.

Available in the Bahamas, Tennessee, and South Florida for now.

80 proof.

B+ / $35 [BUY IT NOW FROM TOTAL WINE]

Afrohead Original Rum

$35

8.5

Rating

8.5/10

BUY IT NOW