Red Leg Banana Rum

Red Leg Banana Rum takes Jamaican rum in a frankly flavoured, crowd-pleasing direction, trading the island's pot-still funk for ripe banana laid over a smooth, sweet base. It is built for ease and mixing rather than contemplation, and makes no pretence of being a serious aged dram.

The nose is sweet and dessert-like with nougat, caramel and vanilla, and the banana carries through the palate alongside a milk-chocolate richness and a fruity, sugary lift. Bottled at a soft 37.5%, it leans into its flavouring without tasting harshly artificial, and the banana note feels convincing rather than synthetic. This is a rum to pour long over ice or into a tropical cocktail, where its sweetness and fruit shine. Approached as a flavoured rum on its own terms it does the job well, but anyone after a dry, oak-driven Jamaican should look elsewhere.