Aroma visualization from community tastings
MHOBA Bushfire
"Barbecue rum!" is how one member summed it up, and that's the honest picture. MHOBA charred local sickle bush staves into this, and the result is huge bacon, campfire smoke and grilled-meat notes over cane juice and funky esters. Several tasters found it thinner on the palate than other MHOBA, with the smoke almost swallowing the rum. Genuinely unlike anything else — but very much a love-it-or-leave-it thing.
The community says- Truly unique
- Bacon and BBQ notes
- Smoke overwhelms rum
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The look inside the bottle
How does MHOBA Bushfire taste?
Aggregated from 109 community reviews.
Liquid barbecue: bacon, smoke, grilled meat People agree it's the most unusual thing they've tasted — liquid BBQ, bacon and campfire smoke. Some love the experiment, others find the smoke drowns the rum. Not a daily sipper.
Adventurous drinkers who want smoky, meaty, one-of-a-kind rum
Anyone who dislikes heavy smoke or wants a classic rum profile
How the community classifies this rum. Each category takes you to similar rums.
49 of 109 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
How is MHOBA Bushfire rated?
RumX’s 0–10 scale is strict: 7.8 sits in the “Good” band. 77% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 1% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
Live auctions
Current bids for this rum at Europe's leading auction houses.
Community voices
What does the community say?
71% rate it between 6 and 8. 18 selected write-ups from 109 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
Most helpful positive review
Pure BBQ! Smoky, bacony, and all that goes with it. No idea how they do it without fatwash, etc., but this thing is a blast. But only if you're into meat 🤣
Review by TheRhumhoe
Most helpful mixed review
A unique Mhoba thanks to its ageing in local wood, which gives it exceptional aromas. The nose offers real meaty notes: meat, bacon, smoky and roasted notes make us think of a Sunday barbecue. The woody notes are followed by esters for funkiness, sugar cane for vegetation and banana and dried fruit for fruitiness. An atypical profile that comes across quite well. On the palate, dark, empyreumatic notes take center stage. Esters, spices, dried fruits and salt share the little space on the palate crushed by the improvised barbecue. At the crossroads of funk, barbecue, heaviness and fermentation, this is a highly original profile. The finish, of decent length, leaves a sensation of burnt wood and smoky notes. Floral and sugarcane notes counterbalance the empyreumatic warmth. A rum to enjoy with a barbecue, of course.
Review by Timo Groeger
Mhoba ist schon nicht schlecht, dieser hier ist ganz ok, gibt aber weitaus bessere. Die Nase ist überwiegend holzig aber auch etwas rauchig. Am Gaumen dann ebenfalls viel Holz, sehr trocken, intensiv und rauchig dieser Rum. Alkohol gut eingebunden.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
#4915 Whisky Live in Paris 27.09.2024-30.09.2024. Another great event meeting a lot of RumX new and old friends. This year three weren't as many new releases as in 2023, but I still had a great time. Nose Faint wood, smoke, light grass, light olive, fruits, sugarcane, light citrus, light tomato. Palate Warm, smoke, light wood, grass, light cherry, olive, sugarcane.,light salt, light earthy, light tomatoes, medium dry, light cinnamon. Finish Long and warm, light wood, smoke, cinnamon, light banana, light cherry, light grass, light salt. I would prefer this one in a mixed, but it's still pretty amazing as a sipper.
Review by Stefan Persson
Tasted this, my first Mhoba Rum, at the Rhum Fest Paris 2026. The distillery was founded by Robert Greaves and started to distilling rum 2013 using a self-built pot still. Mhoba don’t always age their rum in a traditional way using barrels, instead much of their rum is aged using glass demijohns with input staves of wood. These staves is commonly made of American or French oak, but in this case it comes from local wood called sickle bush that’s charred. As most of their rum also this one is produced from cane juice in a pot still. The nose is burnt, smoky, woody, buttery, fruity, roasted and spicy with scents of sugarcane, popcorn, dried fruits, pineapple, banana, leather, ester and vanilla. At the palate it’s intense, dry, funky, woody, smoky, burnt, roasted, charred and spicy with flavors of sugarcane, caramel, pineapple, banana, ester, salt and pepper. The finish is medium long.
Review by Johannes
Now I understand the name of the rum. It has a lot of influence from smoky aromas, campfires, probably from a very heavily toasted barrel. The DNA of Mhoba is still recognizable, but it doesn't meet my taste.
Review by Air-one
Ce rhum Mhoba Bushfire est plutôt atypique de par ses notes fumées. Le nez complexe, fumé, carné et suave offre une belle entrée en matière. La bouche, dans la même veine est très clairement dominé par les notes fumées et charbonnées. La finale est à la hauteur du nez et la bouche.
Review by Jussi Piirainen
Edit: Added a photo On the nose: Woody, smoky notes upfront. More sugarcane and agricole notes appear after the sits in the glass. Taste: Oh yeah, its like having a quite intense smoky barbeque in your mouth. The alcohol is integrated well in this rum. Finish: Sugarcane juice notes try to appear in vegetal and floral notes in the background of smoky notes. Again the finish is quite dry. I have give extra points on creativity and originality for these guys. You have to have a palate for intense rums and smoky aromas in order to enjoy this rum.
Review by Richard Krupa
This is crazy. My first rum in which I smell smoked and salami
Review by Henry Davies
This was an interesting one. The nose is relatively muted, but comes to life on the mouth. Lacks the normal Mhoba elements of tropical rotting fruit and leads with something more whisky like, with venison and biltong notes at the back of the mouth - not something you find often. The smoke is reminiscent of a Laphroaig or similar but more BBQ in nature and builds as if you have inhaled BBQ smoke. In terms of taste it’s not perfectly balanced, with some red wine notes alongside the meat and smoke. I don’t love it but can appreciate the experimentation and glad to have tried
Review by Palo - V Poháriku
Tasting this was an interesting experience, but I wasn't blown by the flavours as much as some people are.
Review by Gil Firth
Bottle What is this cool thing! Maybe not a rum to drink every day but interesting and fascinating. Impressions of za'atar. Burnt spices. Esters. Meat towards the finish. Full of interesting things, annoying, burnt, light grassy, olives. Great fun and definitely unique.
Review by Александр Иванов
Color: intense ruby. Nose: Powerful! Sweet toasted cherry wood, dry apricots, sweet cherries, sugarcane, burn cedar, some tobacco, cinnamon, caramel, maple syrup. Taste: Sweet & powerful. Lot of toasted plums & pears, bananas, cherries, maple syrup, some cinnamon, dark honey, molasses, brown sugar, some coil. Wery tasty! Aftertaste: medium-lond. Dry wood, sweet apricots, cherry candies, cinnamon, little bit of ginger & some bitter chocolate. Very nice.
Review by Rhum Mirror 🇧🇪
Haaa, the nose is atypical. It's a mix between cane juice, smoke and BBQ. It is rather strange but intriguing (positively). On the palate, the 55% do the job, it's hot as a fire. We find heavy and meaty notes: well grilled bacon, meat coming out of the smoker, it's salty and very aromatic. The finish is very long on the ashy-burnt. There is also a little touch of flambéed banana in the dessert. I don't know what Mhoba did to get this flavor profile, but it's pretty amazing and successful.
Review by Gd Flo
It's an experience! But not to my taste 😳I had preferred the 2021 version to the 2022 version of the Rum Society.
Review by Rowald Sweet Empire
Very unique dram. Funky high esther spirit with dry smoky braai wood and a vegetal/greenhouse taste (like the a-typical 2000s Clynelishes). I never tasted anything like this before and its weird...but its good weird you know.
Review by Roman Lelek
Beautiful aroma of Burnt Wood, reminds me a bit of Jamaica, also in taste - alcohol...but the finish is smoother...I'm writing it down in my wishlist...
Review by Kamil Kopij
It's a crazy rum. Never tasted something like that. Barbecue rum!
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Expert reviews
3 critics scored it, averaging 6.6/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by Single Cask Rum
Read full review →
Expert review by Zucker und Zeste
Wicked stuff. Smoky, bacony, even smokier on the palate than on the nose. Seems thinner in mouthfeel than other Mhoba
Expert review by The Dunder Hut
Uff, this is really rough. You hardly recognise the rum behind the raw cured ham. But not the good kind. More the cheap industry hams. I really find it hard to enjoy this The rum is kind of okay. But in the end it just has too many off notes...
Details about MHOBA Bushfire
A Pot Still Rum from South Africa, distilled by MHOBA, at 55%.
Community purchases
47 bottles logged by 43 collectors.
A drinker's rum.
44% opened, 6 emptied and repurchased.
What does MHOBA Bushfire cost?
Community paid 46–64 €.
Current best price: 61.49 € – within the typical community range.
What members actually paid for their bottles. A typical range, not the current shop price. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
47 purchased · 112 tasted · 32 wishlist · as of
About the MHOBA distillery
The MHOBA distillery is located in South Africa. Rums from MHOBA have been reviewed 2,402 times with an average of 8.2/10.
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