Best Rum for Anxiety (15+ List)
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OptimistMinds
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The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
In this quick article, we are going to discuss the best rum for anxiety. We will first expand on how rum can help and what one should be careful of. Then, we will explore some of the best rum brands that you can drink a little of to feel less anxious.
What is the Best Rum for Anxiety?
The best brands for rum in today’s world are listed below:
- Ron Zacapa 23 Centenario
- Ten To One White Rum
- Mount Gay XO Rum
- HH Bespoke Rum
- Equiano Rum
- Angostura 7 Year Old Rum
- Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum
- The Kraken Black Spiced Rum
- Bacardí Superior
- Don Q 151 Rum
- Parce Rum 8-Year Aged
- Bumbu Original Rum
- Flor de Caña
- Appleton Estate
- Privateer
- Santa Teresa
A Little Bit of Rum to Reduce Anxiety
Alcohol in moderate amounts is effective in reducing stress. This has been found in both physiologic and self-report measures. Rum has been historically considered to have many health benefits.
Low and moderate doses of alcohol have been reported to increase overall affective expression, happiness, euphoria, conviviality and pleasant and carefree feelings. Tension, depression and self-consciousness have been reported to decrease with equal doses.
How Rum Helps with Anxiety
An overactive sympathetic nervous system leads to anxiety. As long as there is a perceived threat, it keeps releasing cortisol to keep the body in a fight-or-flight mode. This gives rise to a feeling of being on edge, scientifically known as being anxious.
Alcohol depresses the effect on the nervous system as it is a sedative and a depressant. It can reduce fears and dreads in a very short duration and calm your nerves.
If you have been suffering from acute anxiety attacks, you may try rum. A single serving of 1.5 ounces is enough to reduce anxiety. Its tranquillizing properties will calm you down and give you a good night’s sleep. You can add a bit of rum to your milk at bedtime for an absolutely sound sleep.
Isn’t Alcohol Bad for you?
Alcohol depresses the central nervous system (CNS). When someone first has a drink of alcohol, it often has a sedative effect. It can produce a sense of euphoria and decrease a person’s inhibition. These provide the person with relief from their anxiety. Drinking can reduce fears and take your mind off of your troubles. It can help you feel less shy, give you a boost in mood, and make you feel generally relaxed.
However, if someone starts drinking alcohol as a way to cope with anxiety, it can quickly have the opposite effect. Doing it more frequently or having larger amounts can cause hangovers. The symptoms of a hangover can make it hard to function. Heavy or regular alcohol misuse also often leads to withdrawal.
The symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and anxiety disorders can be similar. Thus, the user has to be extremely careful of the amount of alcohol they are consuming. We suggest you to use it as a last resort if you are having an anxiety attack. There are much better coping mechanisms to deal with regular anxiety that most of us suffer from on a day to day basis, than drinking.
Best Rum Brands for Anxiety
In this section, we will describe some of the best rum brands internationally. Try any of these if you are considering drinking rum for anxiety:
Ron Zacapa 23 Centenario
This Guatemalan rum is clean and rich with a lovely liqueur-like density. The smell has great intensity, sweet with notes of wood. With sweet fruitiness, vanilla, almond, chocolate, toasted wood and delicate hints of spice, it is a delight to the nose.
Dense and exceptionally balanced, Ron Zacapa 23 Centenario has a very long aftertaste. And that’s not it. With an attractive and evocative finish, it is elegant and noble.
Ten To One White Rum
Ten To One White Rum is rapidly redefining the category with its unique flavour profile. It has been crafted with an enticing unaged blend of column still rum from the Dominican Republic. With high ester pot still rum from Jamaica along with this, it yields a beautiful extra-proof expression.
Including notes of jasmine, honeysuckle, white pepper and lemongrass paired with a smooth and clean finish, it is quite relaxing. Wind down with a delicious cocktail made with this rum!
Mount Gay XO Rum
Made with a small blend of carefully selected mature rums, this is a beautifully round and complex liquid. It is distilled using a traditional column and double retort pot still.
Matured in American Whiskey, Bourbon and Cognac cases, this is a wonderful small-batch reserve rum. It has the aroma of perfectly balanced vanilla, oaky and dry spice notes. Tastes of salted caramel, baked fig and clove and dark chocolate, this rum definitely has the power to soothe you.
HH Bespoke Rum
HH Bespoke Rum is a truly unique blend of aged rums reminiscent of those produced in the 18th century. This expressive and distinctive spirit starts as Grade A molasses, which is distilled in a traditional copper still. It is a distinctive barrel rum extremely rich and complex in flavour.
With hints of butterscotch, vanilla and other exotic notes that please the palate, it is a perfect mixer for cocktails. Due to its crisp and clean taste, this rum is perfect as a refreshing drink, to take the edge off.
Equiano Rum
A buttery oak up front, followed by marmalade on toast, chocolate truffle and dried berries teases the nose. Then, a drink rich with butterscotch, and stem ginger along with chocolate and oak hits your palate. The finishing is that of juicy raspberry, orange oils and carraway.
The entire experience described above is presented to you by Equiano Rum. Revel in its deliciousness and feel better. Equiano Rum also donates 5% of the annual profits to ground level equality projects each year.
Angostura 7 Year Old Rum
Angostura rums have been awarded several awards for all the rums they make. The Angostura 7-year-old rum is 80 proof. It is aged in American white oak and then blended with one that’s been through the entire 5 column system. Once blended it is then aged for an additional 7 years to mature.
Upon first pouring, butterscotch, vanilla and fine pipe tobacco fill the air above the glass. After a few minutes, aromas of milk chocolate and a fine Ecuadorian coffee arise and join the other scents.
Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum
Captain Morgan is a spiced rum that was born and blended to have a chill time. It is great for mixing with coke as it does not too taste strong and goes down easy. Smooth and medium-bodied, the classic Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum is a secret blend of spice Caribbean rum.
With subtle notes of vanilla and caramel, it is perfect for pairing with your favourite mixers. So grab a bottle of Captain Morgan Spiced Rum, get your feet off the ground, and relax. Captain’s orders!
The Kraken Black Spiced Rum
One of the fastest-growing rum brands, The Kraken is the world’s first black spiced rum, housed in an iconic bottle. Taste the flavours of cinnamon, vanilla, and nutmeg and experience its magic.
The Kraken, blended with secret spices, is perfect for savouring classics. This black spiced rum is 94 proof. It has a distinct aroma of caramel, toffee and spice with a lingering spicy finish. Enjoy its smoothness in cocktails or as a shot.
Bacardí Superior
This is the original Bacardi rum, dating back to 1862 when Bacardi Massó purchased his first rum distillery in Cuba. 150 years later, Bacardi Superior is now manufactured in Puerto Rico, but the recipe remains largely the same.
A sublime rum for cocktails, it does not dominate other flavours nor does it disappear when mixed. It is perfect for classic rum cocktails like the Mojito. Enjoy a delightful drink at the end of the day to kick back and decompress.
Don Q 151 Rum
Don Q 151 is a high-strength golden rum that’s aged for up to three years in oak. The result is a mix of vanilla, smoke and tobacco flavours. This is a high-strength product and is not recommended to drink neat.
Please enjoy this diluted or with a mixer of your choice. Normally when drinking such high strength drinks there is a lack of flavour. It is drowned out by a burning sensation. However, that is not the case with Don Q. Made in Puerto Rico, it is truly a remarkable drink.
Parce Rum 8-Year Aged
Parce 8-Year is aged in Jack Daniel’s barrels. In the 8 years, this gives it a sweet candied fruit taste. There is enough of the whiskey character left in the taste to remind one of sipping on Jack.
The Parce 8-Year is a great starting point for a whiskey drink just starting to explore aged rums. It is very nice on the nose with hints of vanilla. It has a nice character to it that reminds you of sipping a good drink, straight up or on the rocks. Drink in the company of good friends and family, and enjoy!
Bumbu Original Rum
An authentic Caribbean legend, this flagship Original Bumbu is blended from fine Barbados rum and hand-selected spices. It is based on the original recipe created by 16th and 17th-century sailors of the West Indies.
They blended native Caribbean ingredients into their rum and called it “Bumbu”. This evokes the rich and colourful history of the West Indies. Distilled in small batches and blended by hand, Bumbu reveals its heritage and craftsmanship with every sip.
Flor de Caña
Flor de Caña is a 4-year old premium rum with no added sugar. This light-bodied pure rum has aromas of sweet almonds and vanilla with flavours of white chocolate and orange essence. It has an amazingly crisp, and dry finish.
Perfect for classic cocktails and refreshing drinks, rejuvenate yourself with this after a tiring day. It is sugar-free and gluten-free and fair trade certified, it is warm and caramelly, smooth and delicious.
Appleton Estate
Appleton Estate, deep in the middle of Jamaica’s Nassau Valley, began perfecting complex rum-making over 265 years ago. Surrounded by densely forested limestone hills, the region’s topography makes for a rum unlike any other. Spirits age quicker in tropical climates than cooler ones.
This means that the flavour of these rums develops at a quicker pace. They adhere to strict minimum ageing guidelines. The age statement on a bottle refers to the youngest drop of rum in that blend.
Privateer
Although it sounds like a name chosen to reflect rum’s association with pirates, Privateer is a statement of ethos. This small company aims to repudiate the established practices of the bigger producers. They create rums with no colouring, sweeteners, or filtration.
Other than rejecting all additives, this independent company takes an approach to distillation that will be familiar to whisky lovers. They painstakingly source ingredients and slowly control fermentations to boost ester production. Following this, they carefully managed distillation to bring out the best in the spirit.
Santa Teresa
A superb single estate Venezuelan rum, Santa Teresa 1796 is made using the solera method. This method is used more famously in the production of Spanish sherry. The rums in the blend are aged from five to thirty-five years, resulting in a smooth, dry and balanced spirit.
This makes it perfect for sipping or serving in an Old Fashioned. It is a molasses-based rum produced mostly, but not entirely, from sugarcane grown at the Hacienda Santa Teresa.
Conclusion
In this quick article, we described the best rum for anxiety. We first expanded on how rum can help and what one should be careful of. Then, we explored some of the best rum brands that you can drink a little of to feel less anxious.
The best rum for anxiety are Ron Zacapa 23 Centenario, Ten To One White Rum, Mount Gay XO Rum, HH Bespoke Rum, Equiano Rum, Angostura 7 Year Old Rum, Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum, The Kraken Black Spiced Rum, Bacardí Superior, Don Q 151 Rum, Parce Rum 8-Year Aged, Bumbu Original Rum, Flor de Caña, Appleton Estate, Privateer, and Santa Teresa.
FAQs (Best Rum for Anxiety)
Is Rum good for anxiety?
As discussed earlier, rum can help by making you feel less worked up and worried about what might happen. It gives you a sense of courage to deal with possible outcomes because alcohol makes you feel less inhibited. Having said that, this only works if taken in appropriate portions.
Which alcohol is best for calming nerves?
Generally, wine is considered to have calming effects and does not impair sleep much. But this is only the case if you take just one glass and with a good meal. You may drink red wine at room temperature or chilled white wine based on your preference and the weather.
Is Captain Morgan rum good for you?
Rum consumption, when controlled and regulated, can improve heart health and lower cholesterol. Captain Morgan is one of the top brands in the world for rum. It is a blood thinner and prevents blockages in blood vessels. These benefits only apply if your consumption is limited to one glass a day with meals.
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