Aroma visualization from community tastings
Appleton 21 Years
Loved by Jack M, Stefan Persson & over 100 more
A newcomer-friendly way into well-aged Jamaican rum. Appleton 21 offers vanilla, caramel, orange and polished oak with gentle spice. RumX members praise its balance, elegance and smooth, dry sipping character.
Aggregated from 233 community reviews.
- Elegant nose
- Balanced oak
- Very smooth
+10
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Stern Magazine Details about Appleton 21 Years
A Pot & Column Still Rum from Jamaica, distilled by Appleton Estate, at 43%.
How does Appleton 21 Years taste?
Aggregated from 233 community reviews.
Elegant, smooth entry into aged Jamaica A newcomer-friendly way into well-aged Jamaican rum. Appleton 21 offers vanilla, caramel, orange and polished oak with gentle spice. RumX members praise its balance, elegance and smooth, dry sipping character.
Those building their palate who want a smooth, unsweetened, long-aged rum with vanilla, caramel, orange and gentle oak rather than heavy Jamaican funk or high ABV heat.
Fans of high-ester Jamaican funk or cask-strength intensity, and buyers focused on maximum complexity or value-per-euro at this price point.
How is Appleton 21 Years rated?
RumX's 0–10 scale is strict , 8.0 lands squarely in the "Very good" band. 90% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 1% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
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Rum reviews
A selection of the most popular reviews from our community. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by Jack M
Lovely sipper. Very smooth and easily approachable. Some subtly fruit flavours - orange and coconut, dark chocolate and a certain sweetness. Oak and spice notes come through, particularly in the finish.
Review by Stefan Persson
As a summary it’s complex with a deep taste and a fantastic balance between sweetness and dryness. The nose is a little of everything, but mostly strong aromas of fruits. At the palate all the flavors comes to you together with a certain sweetness and roundness.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
This is a super good rum for the price. A little bit of Jamaica funk all the way and a real joy. You can taste the complexity of the 21 years of maturing.
Review by Oliver
A very good introduction to the world of unsweetened rums. Round and harmonious without the typical Jamaica ester funk.
Review by Galli33
I found it at a bar on my holiday in bibione! Great to start a holiday 😅… So it’s a very fruity interesting solid lovely rum. I can suggest to everyone, who will end a hard working day with an fruity rum to relax! try it you won't regret it. Cheers *Update: Still one of my favorite rums 🥃
Review by cigares
A rum I expected too much of? A blend of vanilla and tropical fruit with a lingering impression of caramel. On the palate, a diluted side first, then spices, caramel again and tropical fruit and prune. The finish is rather short. There's still some spice, wood and tobacco. I find it good but a little disappointing.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
if Jamaica should be easy sipping then it would be this one. Definitely one of the better old Jamaicans with a nice honey banana note! could only have a few more %😅 but for a really nice harmony of wood, sweetness, fruitiness and light ester notes.
Review by DomM
I honestly think this is outstanding quality. Only downside is the low ABV. Nevertheless the rum does not fail to deliver an intense profile. Highly recommended if excessive ABV is not (yet) your cup of tea.
Review by LukaŽiga
8:On the nose, what's immediately striking is its balance. The woodiness is toasted, the alcohol present but well blended and no single aroma takes precedence over the others. Vanilla, floral notes, almond, caramel, woodiness and orange form a winning team with all tropical fruits and funkiness and roasted aromas that emerge on airing. 8,5:On the palate, the attack is both lively and greedy, sweetness is pleasant . The batch is more present here than on the nose(long ageing), but blends very well with the molasses and brings us nutty notes, spices, caramel sweetness and overpowers that famous Jamaican funkiness with grassy and ripe tropical fruits notes. Walnut returns at the end and is a leading note through the palate. 8:The finish is relatively dry, yet long. A mixture of brown sugar and toasted woodiness accompany us for quite a while. Well rounded and smooth, yet lack of that strong omnipresent Jamaican funkiness that we find in Appleton 12 rare casks. Edit:25.4.26
Review by Timo Groeger
Strong part, you notice the 21 years almost immediately. Great nose which is rather sweetish, vanilla, caramel and burnt sugar. The palate also has a subtle sweetness, dark chocolate, vanilla and caramel. The wood only becomes noticeable in the finish.
Review by Joachim Guger
Verkostet in der Dino’s Aphotecary Bar 16.12.2025. Er riecht sehr gut, Lösungsmittel, Lack, gebrannter Zucker, getrocknete Früchte, ein Hauch Kokos, Vanille, Gewürze. Ausgewogen, warm, trocken, wenig komplex. Im Mund dann würzig und etwas Schärfe. Langweiliger Abgang. Insgesamt ein guter, trockener Sipper, mehr aber auch nicht. Die Empfehlung geht da klar an den 12-Jährigen, der ist günstiger, besser und aufregender.
Review by Pavel Spacek
Nice drinking rum of my style - sweet taste, caramel, nuts
Review by Tim
Tastes much better to me now than when I first tasted it, probably because I now also noticed a toasty chocolate note alongside all the fruit and caramel/honey.
Review by Leo Krüper
Very nice Appleton, which unfortunately lacks 10-15% power. Do not understand why this release runs so under the radar.
Expert reviews
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 Rhummer
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Expert review by The Fat Rum Pirate
"If you are an enthusiast of Appleton Estate's rums then trying the 21 will be a must. Its not hugely better than the 12, it is similar just slightly sweeter and with a little bit more going on. You could pay £100-140 for a rum half as good as this!"Read full review →
Expert review by Zucker und Zeste
"Noble and elegant. A Jamaican that is not demanding and yet presents typical flavors. Ideal for the ambitious beginner."
Community purchases
480 bottles logged by 427 collectors.
A drinker & collector.
30% opened, 55 emptied and repurchased.
What does Appleton 21 Years cost?
Community paid €70–€125.
Current best price: €133.00 – above 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+ →
480 purchased · 250 tasted · 303 wishlist · as of
About the Appleton Estate distillery
The Appleton Estate distillery is located in Jamaica. Rums from Appleton Estate have been reviewed 4,040 times with an average of 7.8/10.
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Oliver · FounderBy rum lovers, for rum lovers
I'm Oliver, together with Jakob, Robert and Lukas, we started RumX in 2018 as a small passion project in Stuttgart, back then under the name Rum Tasting Notes.
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