Appleton Joy
For curious explorers and experienced palates: a dry, elegant Appleton with 25–35 years of tropical aging. Expect orange peel, ginger, dried/tropical fruits, cocoa, leather and polished oak. A refined sipping rum, dangerously easy to drink yet complex enough to study, highly praised by RumX members despite its premium price and gentle 45% ABV.
- Elegant complexity
- Dry fruity spice
- Easy sipping
Details about Appleton Joy
Live auctions
Current bids for this rum at Europe's leading auction houses.
How does Appleton Joy taste?
Aggregated from 53 community reviews.
Elegant, dry, long‑aged Appleton sipper For curious explorers and experienced palates: a dry, elegant Appleton with 25–35 years of tropical aging. Expect orange peel, ginger, dried/tropical fruits, cocoa, leather and polished oak. A refined sipping rum, dangerously easy to drink yet complex enough to study, highly praised by RumX members despite its premium price and gentle 45% ABV.
Fans of refined, dry Jamaican sippers who enjoy citrus, ginger, dried fruits and oak, and want a complex but gentle 45% rum for relaxed neat drinking or special occasions.
Those chasing high-ABV power, heavy funk or big sweetness, and anyone sensitive to very high prices relative to intensity.
How is Appleton Joy rated?
RumX's 0–10 scale is strict — 8.5 lands squarely in the "Very good" band. 94% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 1% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
Rum reviews
A selection of the most popular reviews from our community. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by Stefan Persson
Much alike the 21-year old but much smoother even though it’s 90 proof. Buy it if you find it. The nose is fruity, woody and round with aromas of dried fruit and oak. At the palate it’s complex, fruity, spicy, dry, balanced and round with flavors of ginger, dried and tropical fruits. The finish is between medium and long.
Review by Joachim Guger
The nose is dominated by solvents, polish, then tropical fruit, citrus, tobacco. The 25 years of tropical maturity is hardly noticeable. Very nice.In the mouth then much more wood. Long, complex finish , now more caramel and dried fruit.Very complex, easy drinking.Appleton I would not have recognized here, I can not help myself, the rum reminds me strongly of a 45% Caroni minus rubber and tar.😉Not for full proof gladiators, but that was not the intention here. It should be a great sipper, he is then also.Certain recognition value with the 95 Hearts.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
Incredibly elegant, round and full-bodied. It's like baking a banana in honey, dusting it with cocoa and cardamom and then sitting down in a heavy leather armchair in front of the fire. Truly an absolutely wonderful sipping rum from Appleton, which is well suited to the name "Joy"! I was skeptical but am very pleasantly surprised! 😍
Review by Lukas Jäger
Big name, big price, medium taste. Not bad, but price and fame probably come mainly from the marketing or the limitation. Quite complex and long in the mouth, despite the low alcohol, but then again also thin. Above all, very restrained in the nose. Overall, very spicy with dried fruits, which definitely show the age of this blend. For me, despite everything, no highlight, but good, complex and of course also tasty. Can you already also drink ;-)
Review by Gunnar Böhme "Bauerngaumen" 🤓
Messebewertung 14. GRF 2025: Solide, hat mich jetzt jedoch nicht so überzeugt, was wahrscheinlich vor allem an der Verdünnung liegt. Ich stehe ja eher auf zupackende Rums à la Appleton Hearts, wahrscheinlich hätte ich mich Joy nicht mit dieser Erwartung nähern sollen. Aber schön, ihn mal zu einem fairen Preis am Stand von rhumauction.com probiert zu haben.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
Though a light profile rum I still like it a lot and this is my second bottle 😊 ---------- I just bought this one and I am not disappointed. This is a great rum and I decided to buy it after a tasting. If you like funky Jamaican then this is it.
Review by Jakob
Relatively disappointing, had expected more. Rather trivial profile and for me the alcohol integration is not clean enough.
Review by DomM
Expertly crafted and increasingly balanced and smooth. Despite the low ABV, this bottling is very rich in flavors and provides lots of complexity. Only the mouthfeel might have improved at an higher ABV imho. Very good.
Review by Jussi Piirainen
Reviews from GRF 2025 continue. On the nose: Quite complex and fruity palate. Quite mellow on the nose. Vanilla, caramel and butterscotch notes dominate. Taste: Oak, spices. Quite strong orange peel notes. Little bit of ginger notes. Creamy mouthfell and dry. Cocoa. Finish: Woody and leather notes. Little bit of coffee notes. Very dry Quite complex rum from nose to finish. With the palate like this and a big price tag you would still want higher abv with stronger notes. Taste profile could use touch sweetness for my liking, especially the finish. Note that im reviewing the last drops from the bottle so that might have something to do in the tasting notes.
Review by Henry Davies
It’s a much hyped bottle and for me just misses the target. It’s not in absolute terms a bad rum but I struggle to get excited about it in any regard. The nose is pleasant and settles down well, butterscotch and some oak and vanilla. The mouth is where it struggles a bit more, the integration is not quite there and light spice with some pot elements but an altogether unmemorable mouth. The finish retains some spice and is a bit more exciting but doesn’t draw you back in. It’s a collectors bottle more than a drinkers bottle and I would much prefer a Appleton 15/21 or one of the hearts bottles
Review by Jules Selected Spirits
To expensive, nice, but to easily, no punch no power no after tasting.
Review by Filip Šikula
Diamantový adventní kalendář RFC 2024
Review by Stefan L
Still very good.
Review by Richard Krupa
dřevo s karamelem, po dlouhé době nově ochutnaný Appleton, příjemně jemná nasládlá chuť
Review by Thomas P.
Ganz solide im Crusta.
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 →
Community purchases
142 bottles logged by 52,000+ RumX members. The ratio of closed / opened / emptied, indicates whether this rum is meant to be drunk or is a collector's item.
Also on the wishlist of 39 members.
About the Appleton Estate distillery
The Appleton Estate distillery is located in Jamaica. Rums from Appleton Estate have been reviewed 3,449 times with an average of 8.0/10.
To Appleton Estate →You may also enjoy
Rum enthusiasts who like this rum have also given the following rums high ratings:
Elixir Distillers of London Black Tot Rum Last Consignment
Elixir Distillers of London Black Tot Rum Last ConsignmentLiquid history, dark and insanely complex
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1994
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1994Benchmark Appleton Hearts powerhouse
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1995
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1995Dry, woody, chocolate‑tobacco Appleton powerhouse
Appleton 21 Years
Appleton 21 YearsElegant, smooth entry into aged Jamaica
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003Serious Appleton for seasoned palates
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2002
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2002Serious, dry Appleton for grown‑up palates
Don't miss out on any more deals on Appleton Joy.
Set a target price in the app, and we'll let you know as soon as the rum becomes available at that price from one of our partner stores. This works for any rum on your wish list.
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.
What began as a digital tasting diary is now the world's most comprehensive platform for rum fans. We combine the collective intelligence of our community with an integrated marketplace, so you can choose with confidence — without paperwork, detours, or expert jargon.
Oliver, Stuttgart
About RumX →
