The most expensive rums in the world mix extreme rarity, long ageing, lavish decanters and, in some cases, price tags built more on myth than market reality.
After comparing retailer listings, auction results and the most widely cited reports, this list ranks the bottles with the highest confirmed or claimed prices. When a figure can’t be verified, that uncertainty appears up front. It’s a straight, honest look at what the world’s priciest rums actually cost.
There are no claims of greatness here, no hand-wringing about value. Just the big hitters. We’ve listed multiple currencies (dollars, pounds, euros) to make sure the list is as precise as possible.
The most expensive rums in the world
Does anyone know why it’s called the Golden Cities series?
Dictador M City Golden Cities
Price: $1.5 million, unverified
This is Dictador’s headline art piece, created as a fusion of old rum and gem-studded presentation. It’s positioned as the most expensive rum on earth, but no public sale confirms the figure. The brand states the value, the media repeats it, and collectors treat it as an objet d’art rather than a drinkable release.
Dictador Generations En Lalique 1976
Price: £30,000 confirmed auction, £12,995 to £20,000 retail
This is one of Dictador’s most credible high-value releases. It combines aged rum from 1976 with a Lalique decanter. A Sotheby’s sale at around £30,000 provides a firm benchmark. Retail listings sit lower, making the confirmed auction result the truest guide to value.
Angostura has bottled some remarkable rum. Remember Zentih?
Legacy by Angostura
Price: $100,000 claimed, $25,000 to $35,000 real market range
Created for Trinidad and Tobago’s fiftieth anniversary, this blend uses some of the rarest rums Angostura holds. Only twenty decanters exist. Some articles still claim $100,000, but no sale verifies it. Actual market appearances fall into a far more believable $25,000 to $35,000 bracket. Angostura has actually featured on this blog before for its expensive rum. In July 2022, Zentih went on sale at £2,500.
Harewood Rum 1780
Price: £24,500 confirmed sale
A genuine historical relic, Harewood 1780, was discovered in Harewood House in Yorkshire after centuries of storage. It’s one of the oldest surviving Caribbean rums ever bottled. In 2014, sixteen bottles of what was then dubbed “The world’s oldest rum” sold for a record-breaking £135,000. The sale meant each bottle sold for more than £8,000, which at the time also made it the most expensive rum in the world. Since then, bottles have sold for higher individual prices. One Christie’s auction fetched £24,500.
Clément Tournaire 1966
Price: €18,000 to €20,000 retail
This extremely limited Martinique from Clément pairs mature agricole rum with an ornate Tournaire decanter. While some older articles place it among six-figure bottles, traceable prices from luxury retailers sit firmly around €18,000 to €20,000.
Harewood Rum 1780 is an incredible historic relic
Appleton Estate 50 Year Old
Price: $6,500 to $7,000 retail
Released for Jamaica’s fiftieth year of independence, this half-century-old rum shows Appleton’s maturity at its peak. The flavour sits deep in oak, spice and tropical fruit, and prices across sources align with surprising consistency.
Albion 1983 Demerara Rum
Price: $2,500 to $6,300, depending on bottling
This Guyanese rum from closed stills carries cult status. Prices vary based on cask, bottler and condition. Some bottlings come to market around €2,500, while others sit above $6,000.
Caroni Paradise releases
Price: $4,200 to $6,000, depending on edition
Caroni’s star keeps rising, and the Paradise editions show how intense collector demand has become. Each bottle comes from long-aged Trinidadian stocks. Prices fluctuate, and the gap between retailer and auction can be significant.
Wray and Nephew 1940s Rum
Price: $5,000 to $6,000 verified retail
A surviving wartime Jamaican bottling from Wray and Nephew that offers a snapshot of production styles long gone. Retail listings sit near £4,000 to £5,000, making this one of the more stable high-value entries.
The only rum on this list that yours truly has tasted. It’s worth every penny.
Havana Club Máximo Extra Añejo
Price: £1,975
Máximo uses the oldest reserves in the Havana Club warehouses. It is Cuba’s flagship luxury rum, rich, elegant and scarce by design.
Bacardi Millennium Rum
Price: $1,500 to $2,000 verified retail
Released to welcome the year 2000, this crystal-decanted expression showcases Bacardi’s older stocks. Prices remain steady, with multiple retailers agreeing on the bracket.
Brugal Papá Andrés
Price: up to $1,500 verified retail
Once reserved for the Brugal family, Papá Andrés is bottled in limited runs with a refined Dominican profile. Some sites list higher historical figures, but current retail sits around the $1,200 to $1,500 mark.
Where prices clash
These figures were published after cross-checking all available sources. You can see the discrepancies between claimed prices and verified sales. Rum pricing is inconsistent because information travels faster than verification. Values can also shift depending on bottling, scarcity and current collector appetite.
If you have any hard evidence to help us update our list of the most expensive rums in the world, either with new bottles or corrected prices, do let us know.
