As National Rum Day approaches on August 16, a quiet revolution is unfolding—not in the Caribbean or the cane fields of Réunion—but in the heart of India’s sugarcane belt. Its name is Camikara, a Sanskrit word meaning “liquid gold.” But this is no branding gimmick. This is history in a bottle.
Distilled by Piccadily Agro Industries, Camikara is India’s first-ever pure cane juice rum, crafted without molasses, color, sugar, or additives—a bold declaration in a country where molasses-based rums have long reigned. It’s a throwback and a step forward all at once, a liquid homage to the farmers who’ve grown and juiced sugarcane for centuries, now channeled into a bottle that just won Gold at the 2025 Rum & Cachaça Masters in London. That’s right—Camikara is the first Indian rum to earn that honor, standing shoulder to shoulder with the world’s finest.
This isn’t just about awards, though. It’s about a redefinition of terroir. Camikara takes its cues from the rhum agricole tradition of the French Caribbean but delivers something unmistakably Indian—bold, earthy, sun-soaked, and alive.
The Camikara 3-Year-Old ($30, 42.8% ABV), aged in American oak, is a revelation. The nose leans into sweet sugarcane and green vegetal tones, layered with melon, honey, and the faint, nostalgic musk of wet leather. The palate is textured—oak and char usher in waves of cane juice and a dry, smoky balance, finishing soft, rounded, and faintly sweet, like a memory of something warm.
But the real connoisseur’s bottle might be the Camikara 8-Year-Old ($40–$45). Distilled in copper stills and left to age in American oak for nearly a decade, it opens with a nose of honey, ginger, prunes, and caramel, and then veers off into unexpected territory—banana, marshmallow, and sweet spice, ending with a lingering note of wood and warmth.
What’s unfolding here is a kind of spirit diplomacy. Camikara isn’t trying to mimic the Caribbean—it’s claiming its own terrain. As National Rum Day nears, this is the rum to watch. Or better yet, to taste. Because the future of rum might just be Indian. And it’s golden.
For more information, head over to the brand’s official website.
