Aroma visualization from community tastings
Appleton Rare Casks 12 Years
Oak, vanilla and caramel do the heavy lifting here, with a soft banana note and just a whisper of Jamaican funk in the background. Members call it a "Jamaican with manners" — rounder and less estery than a Hampden, with dried fruit, cocoa and warm baking spice. Many treat it as their daily sipper; the one recurring gripe is that 43% keeps it feeling a touch light.
The community says- Well-rounded oak
- Easy sipper
- Light at 43%
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Buy Appleton Rare Casks 12 Years:
Compare all 15 shop offers from 37.80 €
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The look inside the bottle
How does Appleton Rare Casks 12 Years taste?
Aggregated from 287 community reviews.
Rounded, oaky Jamaican with gentle funk Widely loved as a well-rounded, oak-forward Jamaican that sips easily and shines in a Mai Tai. Most wish it hit harder — the 43% and quiet esters leave funk fans wanting more.
People wanting a rounded, oaky Jamaican without heavy funk
Funk chasers who want big Hampden-style esters and higher proof
How the community classifies this rum. Each category takes you to similar rums.
85 of 287 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
How is Appleton Rare Casks 12 Years rated?
RumX’s 0–10 scale is strict: 7.7 sits in the “Good” band. 80% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 0% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
Live auctions
Current bids for this rum at Europe's leading auction houses.
Community voices
What does the community say?
80% rate it between 6 and 8. 20 selected write-ups from 287 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.
One of the community's most-rated rums
Review by LukaŽiga
Most helpful positive review
8,3:On the nose, we have all Jamaican markers combined with sweetness: ether, glue, vanilla, orange, grapes, plums, mango, banana, passion fruit and walnut. The whole is complex, yet easy to drink. Very tempting... 8,0:On the palate, the attack is supple without being to sweet.Notes from the nose are present, some caramel added. A certain woodiness accompanies vanilla and orange peel. The whole is not devoid of vivacity. 8,0:The fairly long vanilla-dominated finish reveals a touch of cocoa, some black tea.A wisp of caramel bitterness crawls in, now a touch less rounded. Generally well rounded, nose great, as a whole better than 21, more Jamaican, but finish-still very good, not on the nose level. Edit:18.4.26
Review by Henning
Most helpful critical review
Rund aber flach, bleibt wenig Geschmack hängen. Holz, und Gewürztöne. Gut trinkbar aber Langweilig. Hier hätte ich mehr erwartet und bin von Appelton deutlich eher meinen Geschmack gewöhnt. Keine Fehler aber nichts für mich
Review by Stefan Persson
Appleton is a nice rum when you want a round and less funky Jamaican compared to the other brands from there. The nose is soft and fruity with aromas of caramel, coffee, leather, banana and orange. At the palate it’s fruity, full bodied, woody, nutty, spicy and a little funky with flavors of dark chocolate, oak and vanilla. The finish is medium long and round with flavors of coffee.
Review by Louis Zimmermann
Une excellente porte d’entrée dans l’univers des rhums jamaïcains. Celui-ci livre les marqueurs typiques que l’on attend, avec des notes de fruits tropicaux et une douceur apportée par ses 43% (même si certains pourront trouver cela un peu léger). Il permet de poser les bases avec justesse. Son seul petit défaut, à mes yeux, est un manque de vivacité, mais pour le rôle qu’on lui attribue, il remplit parfaitement sa mission.
Review by Dunzi
Not my favorite, but price performance fully okay. In the finish quite sharp, but you can already tell that it is an honest rum.
Review by Joachim Guger
Let it be said up front, I am an Appleton fan.Nice flavor profile. Dried fruit, banana, perfect wood ripeness, spice and at the end the potstill portion with solvent. Complex.Also has something fresh like an Agricole.The 43% limit the potential, if you want more, you should reach for the 2003, this resembles it the most.At 25€ a bargain and a Gästerum, for which you do not have to be embarrassed and to which I myself like to reach.😉 Super in the Daiquiri.🍸The bottle is also really nice.
Review by Luca Iazzetta
Rather sluggish
Review by Rumpalumpa
Einfach nur wunderbar diese Kombination von leichtem Jamaica Funk auf Basis von klassischen karamelligen, süßen Rum Noten, die den meisten andere Jamaikanern meiner Meinung nach fehlen. Perfekter Einstieg in Jamaika Rum.
Review by Anthony D3
Very intense wood/leather flavors
Review by Jarrod Smith
Tasting side by side with the 8 year, this is a lot more enjoyable. Almost no alcohol taste. More wood, and a beautiful mouthfeel.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
This one is better than the regular 12 year old and a very nice surprise. I also like the shape of the bottle. Oak from nose to finish, very fresh with fruits and spices. This is a sipper and not a mixer. Price to quality is very good.
Review by Decky Hicks Doughty
The nose is quite nutty, almonds mainly. There's also caramel and wood. Not too fruity or funky. Burnt dark sugar dominates the palate but tobacco and oak keep things from being too sweet. The finish is medium to long and has lots of chilled out oak and espresso coffee notes. It's a good rum to relax with. Nothing to shocking but the quality is there.
Review by Tim
Toller Einsteigerrum, der harmonische und runde Aromen hat. Früchte (ganz schwach Ester) Karamell, Holz, Gewürze. Auch im Mund und Abgang mit ähnlichen Aromen, wobei etwas Tabak und Erde hinzukommt. Einziger Kritikpunkt ist natürlich die Verdünnung. Ein Rum mit Fasscharakter.
Review by Abrahan Reyes
I would love to have the other 12-year expression in hand to try side by side. I couldn't detect much difference from what I remember and perceived. It's still very pleasant and easy to drink. Interestingly, I noticed an aftertaste that somehow resembles sugarcane juice rum.
Review by Adrian Wahl
Really solid Jamaican. For me, however, more of a mixer. 74/100
Review by Jakob Deiner
Sehr angenehmer, einladender, rummiger, würziger, vielseitiger Geruch. Im Geschmack fruchtig, gleichzeitig holzig, würzig und ein wohlig warmer Abgang ganz ohne Brennen. Pur sicher einer meiner Favoriten unter den eher trockenen Rums. Im Rum Mule genial, beste den ich bisher hatte, noch vor Goslings. Drinks: - Pur: 4.5/5 - Rum Fashioned: 3.5/5 - Rum Cola: 4/5 - Rum Mule: 5/5 - Rum Punch: 4/5
Review by Martin Ekrt
I have another gift in the form of this bottle. Light aromas of banana, vanilla, barrel, nuts and a subtle taste of Jamaican esters. Silky flavours of vanilla, tropical fruit, cask, light esters and finishes with more dried fruit and caramel. The perfect unpretentious rum for everyone.
Review by pavlix vipax
Ešte neviem, vo vôni lepšie asi ako čokoľvek, ale v chuti celkom silné, stipkavejsie, whiskovejsie, ešte treba dať šancu, olejové silné, dobre, nejaké ovocie na záver marakuja, krémové uhladené, čokoláda, jemne stipnutie, kratší záver , vôňa sladká, estery, karamel, v chuti celkom kompkex
Review by abaker-rum
This is one of my go to mixing rums so I rate it a bit higher than perhaps the individual shipping taste deserves. That said it is still a very good rum with a great pineapple and caramel nose that continues into the palate adding wood and spices from the aging. It has a short bust flavorful finish.
Review by TheTobias
The cask influence is rather low despite 12 years of aging with a actually like very much. The fruity site is on the focus of this rum. I love this balance and prefer it over other longer aged rums (eg Doorlys 12).
No reviews match this filter.
Expert reviews
3 critics scored it, averaging 7.8/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by Single Cask Rum
Read full review →
Expert review by Rum nagykövet
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Expert review by Alkotip
Read full review →Although the trend in the rum community today is to drink Jamaican rums with a higher amount of esters than Appleton 12, it will certainly defend its place of honor. It has a balanced intense but smooth aroma and a complex taste in which you will find both sweetness and dryness, with citrus, coffee, chocolate or vanilla. It drinks beautifully and lingers in the throat long enough for you to enjoy it to your heart's content.
Details about Appleton Rare Casks 12 Years
A Pot & Column Still Rum from Jamaica, distilled by Appleton Estate, at 43%.
Community purchases
643 bottles logged by 555 collectors.
A drinker & collector.
33% opened, 84 emptied and repurchased.
What does Appleton Rare Casks 12 Years cost?
Community paid 21–47 €.
Current best price: 37.80 € – within the typical community range.
What members actually paid for their bottles. A typical range, not the current shop price. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
+26 purchases in the last 3 months.
Added to collections, last 12 months — dark bars are the last 3.
643 purchased · 298 tasted · 251 wishlist · as of
About the Appleton Estate distillery
The Appleton Estate distillery is located in Jamaica. Rums from Appleton Estate have been reviewed 4,294 times with an average of 7.8/10.
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