I’ve found that generally, the Tortuga rum-cakes and Haagen-Dasz rum-raisin ice creams tend to have a very flavorful and intense rum, but other rums you buy directly in bottle form, such as Captain Morgan, are pretty tasteless, almost like pure alcohol alone or mouthwash in comparison. Anyone know what type of rum is used specifically in those cakes and ice creams?
I’m no expert, but I’m guessing it’s rum extract in baking and ice cream, so concentrated, while Captain Morgan is not, I am told, very good rum.
Ah OK, so not actual rum.
Tortuga claims it is a 5-yr Golden Rum. Presumably this stuff. Which is not distributed in the U.S. - apparently they are heavily tied to the tourist industry and sell a lot in gift stores and cruise ships in the Caribbean.
ETA: No luck digging up Häagen-Dazs, but apparently they also use real rum of some sort - they soak the raisins in it.
Bicardi, Capt Morgan et alii are very bland and like Smirnoff geared for the lowest common denominator drinker - the kind that drinks, throws up, drinks more. I started drinking Plantation Rum and it is a world of difference.
If you are looking for a rum to bake or cook with, look for Stroh rum from Austria. It has a very pronounced butterscotch taste and goes excellently with sweet recipes.
A friend who knows a police officer said at almost every drunken driving crash by a teenager he finds a bottle of Capt. Morgan rolling around in the car.
Rum Raisin is my favorite ice cream. The ingredient list states, “rum”, not “rum flavored”.
Why MikeG, however would you know about Stroh? 
I only set him on fire a little!
There’s a wide world of rum out there. Some, like classic Bacardi white rum are pretty neutral, and others, like the Plantation OFTD or any of the aged Demerara rums are going to be very heavy on the molasses/burnt sugar sort of flavors. Others, especially from Jamaica, have what’s called “hogo”, which is for lack of a better term, a sort of funky flavor derived from the production process.
Most inexpensive “dark” or “gold” rums like Bacardi Dark or Cruzan Dark are colored and minimally aged. You have to get into the roughly $20/bottle range before you start seeing some of the better ones.
I’d recommend El Dorado 5, 8 or 12, Doorly’s 5, 8, 12 or XO, or anything by Plantation outside of the 3 yr light rum if you want that “rum” flavor in abundance.