Rums in Aruba?

I have never really developed a taste for rum, but have never had any of quality(translate to only Bacardi). I'm going to drink some in Aruba. It seems like the right drink for there. What would most bars carry that would be good quality, smooth ones to try. Will there be Cuban rums to try, also?

I have never been a huge rum fan. Just used it in mixed drinks. That has just changed recently after trying El Dorado 15 yr special reserve. It has changed my opinion of rum and now deserves its own space on the Scotch shelf.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana_Club

http://www.havana-club.com/

(Bacardi (now) also makes a run called Havana Club for the US market, but it isn't quite the same thing.)

Havana Club 7 Años (7 years old) (sometimes called HC7 dry) is the classic Cuban sipping rum. Definitely worth trying. Do not mix. A waste. For mixing:

HC Añejo Reserva (5 yr, sorta) is slightly less expensive than HC7, but seems much less complex to me. The AR bottles and the older style HC7 bottles are very similar, so be careful (and that is why I have a bottle of AR). Can be sipped, but makes an awesome rum and Coke

On the more expensive side, HC Cuban Barrel Proof (now called Selección de Maestros) is supposed to be a cut above HC7 and older, and is now about twice the price of HC7 (it wasn't that much more expensive than HC7 a few years ago). It is also 45% instead of the usual 40%. (Having some CBP as I write this :-)

HC15 is MUCH more expensive. HC Maximo is ridiculously expensive. I can't afford either :-).

Note HC7 is one of the most heavily counterfeited spirits. I don't know about the new design bottles, but the old design HC7 bottles had a plastic one-way valve in the neck to prevent refilling.

Note also that due to the way ageing is done in rum, years of age aren't strictly comparable between brands - or between spirits.

Totally agree with Craig - Havana Club is a great sipping rum. I also am partial to Montecristo rum...

Enjoy!