Tiki Tastings: Paradise Mango Rum Liqueur

When a friend traveling out of the country stops at duty free just to look for unusual liqueurs and unavailable rums, you know that you have found a real friend. One of Rob’s friends picked up a bottle of Paradise Mango Rum Liqueur on his way out of the Philippines. The distillery that produces it – Destileria Limtuaco & Co. – is the oldest operating distillery in the Philippines. This particular liqueur is unique in that it is the only mango rum flavored completely with natural fruits, blending ripe mangoes and aged rum to build the finished product. The liqueur is mango-colored and comes in a pretty frosted bottle. We haven’t seen it for sale in any of the liquor stores that we frequent, but there is fairly wide international distribution of this liqueur, so it might pop up in places besides duty free.

We love the look of this liqueur, since you tell that it is made with fresh mangoes just from looking at it. The liqueur smells like mangoes, with just a hint of rum. The mango flavor feels quite natural and it is not overly sweet, though this liqueur is only 16% ABV. In addition to the mango, you’ll pick up a hint of sugar-and-vanilla rum flavor and the faintest trace of anise. This slight touch of licorice gave the liqueur some depth and, frankly, made it stand out from the pack of artificially flavored mango syrups and liqueurs out there. The opaque liqueur is not too syrupy, but it is a bit thicker than a bottle of straight spirits would be.

This is a fun liqueur to keep on the shelf and we like experimenting with it in drinks like Mango Daiquiris, where we don’t want to pour in a bunch of straight fruit juice. It has a good mango flavor without being sugary, which makes it easy to mix with. The manufacturer recommends sipping it neat (not bad, but we prefer to mix it) and even using it in recipes where you want to inject a little bit of extra mango flavor.

Liqueur Rating: 3/5

Liqueur Rating Scale:
0/5 – What is this?
1/5 – Bad. Not worth buying and not worth drinking
2/5 – Not very good, but ok in a pinch.
3/5 – Good and a very good choice for cocktails.
4/5 – Very tasty liqueur, with complex flavors that is very good on its own or in cocktails.
5/5 – Absolutely delicious, high quality liqueur.