An Upscale, Aged Indian Rum? This Whisky Distiller Has One

Indian rums have never had a good reputation overseas, because the country’s domestic “rums” have often been of low quality. Indeed, often they don’t even qualify as rums at all in most global markets, because they’re not made entirely from sugar cane or sugar cane byproducts.

But one of India’s best whisky makers is looking to change the conversation. Camikara (Sanskrit for “Liquid Gold) is distilled entirely from cane juice, without any additives. The brand is distilled by Piccadily Agro, maker of Indri single malt Indian whiskies, which have notched scores of 92-94 points in four reviews from our tasting panel. Camikara had a brief U.S. introduction in 2022 with a highly limited 12 year old rum, but now it’s back with a pair of rums, aged for 3 and 8 years.

French Methods Meet Indian Terroir

Camikara’s house style is inspired by rhum agricole, the rum that originated in the French Caribbean during the early 19th century, when France started refining sugar from domestically grown sugar beets. That decision hurt France’s holdings in the Caribbean—like Saint-Domingue (modern-day Haiti), Martinique, and the Guadeloupe archipelago—which relied on sugar cane exports. So these island producers started crushing their sugar cane into juice and distilling it into a spirit called rhum agricole (French for “agricultural rum”). The style is much more widespread today, with some rum fans prizing it for its flavor profile—generally lighter, grassier, and less sweet overall than its molasses-distilled counterparts.

Camikara starts off with Indian grown sugarcane, tapping an indigenous Indian variety that’s cultivated on contract by local farmers. After being squeezed, the juice is fermented for 24–48 hours before being distilled at the Piccadily Distillery in Haryana (northern India), using both copper pot and column stills. (The pot stills are the same ones used to distill Indri single malt.) The new 3 and 8 year old releases are blends of column-stilled and pot-stilled rums. For maturation, Camikara prefers to age its rums in bourbon barrels.

This production method isn’t easy. “Making a rhum agricole-style rum in India is far more challenging than working with molasses,” says master blender Surrinder Kumar. “Fresh cane juice is highly perishable in our tropical climate and demands immediate fermentation, while the aromatic cane varieties required for complexity aren’t widely cultivated here.”

Indeed, no story about Indian spirits is complete without discussing its weather conditions, which are difficult for making spirits, with its tropical climate wreaking havoc on barrel yields—the angels’ share is around 10%–12% annually. That metric is the main reason why Camikara’s inaugural 12 year old was so limited—with only 6.6% of the batch’s original volume surviving its extra-long maturation time. The distillery mitigates some of the evaporation through its warehouse design, which prioritizes temperature stability and airflow. But all of that heat does provide some benefits. “The Indian climate accelerates extraction, so while we lose more spirit, we achieve rich, mature flavor profiles in a shorter time,” he explains. “The angels may take more, but what remains is far more concentrated and characterful. That is what gives our rum its depth and uniqueness.”

How Do They Taste?

According to Kumar, the high temperatures and evaporation rates are just one half of the battle, with the other part being education. “Beyond production, we also face regulatory hurdles and the task of educating consumers who are far more familiar with sweeter, molasses-based rums,” he says. “But those very challenges, combined with India’s diverse cane, unique terroir, and accelerated maturation, give us the chance to create something truly distinctive on the global rum stage.”

Camikara 3 year old Indian Rum

ABV: 42.8%
SRP: $30

Natural aromas of brown sugar sweetness, oak, earthiness, ripe mango, and melon. The palate is soft, with lots of sweet tropical fruit balanced by the oak. A nice finish creates a light and pleasant sipper—David Fleming

Camikara 8 year old Indian Rum

ABV: 42.8%
SRP: $45

Much deeper than the 3 year old because of its aging, but not overly oaky at all. Syrupy sweet but balanced on the palate, with more complex candied fruit notes of pear and some nice pineapple tartness, vanilla, and a hint of clove, ginger, and other spices. The finish is mellow and sweet.—David Fleming