The Scoffers
Buderim Ginger Beer & Spiced Rum
It's not often I will pen missives on the RTD market, as they are not a category we are over enamoured with, but, we were alerted to this product by a reader and are giving it a look.
I grew up drinking home made ginger beer - the kind of stuff Mum made and popped into the laundry cupboard. On occasion, it exploded and I do recall the time my father put the foot down after one particularly explosive batch managed to see Mum with a number stitches in her foot, and said thats enough. No more. Its dangerous.

As a result I haven't really consumer much of it since then. One must also confess to not being a rum drinker, nor am I at all interested in the spiced rum explosion drawing the youth to the big retails chains to purchase. But I shall not judge on any of that. This is actually a refreshing little tipple on a warm day.
Buderim Ginger on Queensland's Sunshine Coast has taken to producing their version of a dark and stormy, which is a tradition dating back to the late 1800's by all accounts. Its sweet - or sweet for my taste at least, but there are lovely spice characters from both the rum and the warmth of ginger. It's heavily dominated by vanilla and sugar, which I kind of expected, but there is some depth and texture to it as well. The ginger beer alone would be tasty, with a crunchy green apple like bite to it, as well as a bit of gingery heat.
All in all, it's not something I would deliberately buy again for me, but I very much get the appeal.
Buderim Ginger Beer & Spiced Rum can be found in major chains
4.5% ABV in both cans ($16 x 4 pack) and bottles ($21 x 4 pack)
https://www.buderimginger.com/ginger-beer-spiced-rum/