South Bay Small Batch

This smaller batch production dark golden rum is a starter-sipper. Smooth, served neat, finishes with a vanilla flavor. Good, easy going entry-level rum.

Having it 1:1 with Sprite makes it very smooth sweet with a vanilla finish. Very nice simple drink for happy times.

Nice presentation bottle with a decent cork.. Dark amber in colour and when poured doesn't give off much in alcohol fumes. As mentioned , you dont need a leave in the glass for long. Warm and spicey in the mouth with a lovely fruity taste , probably the sherry influences.
No burn on exit.. I would guess not much if any sugar added ?
Nice sipper but weak as a mixer.. if you mix I would suggest 1 /1 ratio.. I imagine this would make a good cocktail. Definitely a re buy in my books !

Enjoyed a bottle of South Bay Rum from Dominican Republic. Unique bottle and label design. Well priced at $27 per bottle. Dark mahogany color. Plenty of oak, vanilla and a hint of sherry to your nose and palate when neat sipped. Smooth and mild burn at the end. Not bad but better when mixed.

I saw this one on the liquor store shelves months ago and assumed that it was yet another gimmicky rum. Then I read reviews here, but the sherry cask and port cask aging caused even further hesitation. So today I told myself what the hell and bought it. Reading the fine print, this rum was crafted by none other than the president of Oliver & Oliver International. Holy shit! Look what I have been missing!

It is a dark brown color in the snifter and needs very little time to breathe. The aromas are far too complex to mention and the taste is extremely smooth while still having lots of body. Smooth and rich! There is absolutely no bitter after taste and very little after burn as what can be expected from drinking 80 proof rum neat. If I see another bottle from this same batch, I will surely grab it. It is not often that a gamble on a rum that I know very little about winds up in my top ten percent. As an added bonus, it appears to have no added sugar. The flavors come from all of the complex barrels used in aging.

I can recommend this rum to connoisseurs as well as beginners. The only problem for beginners is that after trying this rum, there is a 90 percent chance that all other rums will taste like crap. This one is very close to perfection.

Update Jan 30, 2019: This bottle only lasted three weeks and was good to the last drop, still tasting the same since I first opened it. I did notice that it is a Limited Edition. I have yet to see another bottle on the shelves of my favorite liquor stores. If I see it again, I will gladly buy up all that they have.

Update April 22, 2019: I am now on my second of three bottles that I special ordered from a very good local merchant. I also compared it side by side in Glencairn glasses to Kirk & Sweeney 18. The two of them are hard to tell apart, but the after taste is the huge difference. K&S 18 is woody. South Bay is complex rather than woody. I will continue to special order these rums.

What a pleasant surprise this rum is. A solid sipper that is quite sweet. Vanilla and Carmel are the main flavors.

Nice flavored rum which picks up a lot of its diverse flavors from not only the solera method of aging but because of the various barrels used to age this rum. A somewhat fruity and oaky rum that provides a smooth and enjoyable rum with a hint of vanilla and sweetness to make this rum a nice sipper.

One of the best. Vanilla notes very visible. A little bit spicy. Nothing wrong with that. Definitely a re-buy

I've really been enjoying this rum! You can surely taste the notes of Sherry, Port, and Scotch that the small batches were aged in. I get creamy notes of vanilla on the palate with some buttered rum candy and nutmeg in the finish. A great sipping and mixing rum for the price!

I didn't expect much, but have been pleased with this rum. I've used it in cocktails and it has a nice flavor. It's also good as an easy sipper on the rocks.