Supplies of Corbuba Dark rum have been constrained over the past months, leading some to worry if the product would be discontinued. Instead, it has been a process of clearing the inventory of bottles with an older style label.
Behold the new Coruba labels! Interesting, this style basically matches an older label design. A few years ago, Campari made a whole line of Coruba rums; in addition to the classic Dark, there was Coconut and Mango and Pineapple etc. A few of these flavored rums are still available on dusty shelves in independent liquor stores, but why bother with flavored rums. Meanwhile, the workhorse Dark Jamaican rum that most people favor over brand leader Myers’s has dropped the “Dark” moniker and is now simply Coruba Jamaican Rum. Sure would be nice if Campari pushed this product a little harder, like they do with the Appleton and Wray & Nephew brands.
I love this rum (though I do slightly prefer Blackwell Gold, a sister brand also under the Appleton/Wray & Nephew umbrella), and it’s quite coveted by fans of tropical cocktails. At Hale Pele in Portland the Mai Tai rum is 3 parts Coruba and 1 part Wray & Nephew Overproof and that is a fabulous Mai Tai.
Looking at the new Coruba next to a pour of the previous edition, it seems like the rum is a hint or two darker and there is a slightly different taste that maybe be related to slightly more caramel coloring. That said, the differences are very small, so if you’ve liked Coruba rest assured this is still the rum you want to obtain.
I got my bottles at K&L Wines in the SF Bay Area. Look for these new labels coming to a fine liquor store near you.
