The Demerara County of Guyana has been steeped in the history of sugar and rum production since the 17th century. By the 18th century, there were over 300 estates growing sugar cane, each with their own distillery, each producing their own unique rums. Through the centuries, these estates and distilleries have been amalgamated, fortunately, many of their marques and original stills were preserved. I’ve experienced more Demerara rums in blends than I have individual still rums. Demerara rums are very popular here in the UK and make a pretty cheap and tasty weekend mixer. I have tried a VelierEnmoreand Port Mourant “blend” and a Silver Seal Enmore from 2002. So I kind of have an idea what to expect. Well I think I have anyway. Velierset the benchmark by which all aged Demerara has perhaps been judged, particularly over the past 5 years at least. Prior to that (and prior to greater knowledge regarding additives) El Dorado were seen as kings. For whatever reason a decision has been made that Velier will no longer bottle El Dorado’s aged Demerara and it appears they will be doing it themselves.

The entry into the mouth is somewhat drier than the nose implied. The mouth is heated up with oak spice, and my first impression is that I am sampling a yummy oak and toffee extract filled with rich brown sugar. The oak is at the center of the flavour, yet the tannins do not inhibit the other flavours in the rum from forming and delighting me. Raisins, prunes, and dates give the rum an almost smoky quality while the impressions of nutty elements adds softness to the mouth-feel. Cinnamon, vanilla, and brown sugar create a wonderful baking spice flavour which weaves throughout, and the rum is an absolute marvel of complexity and balance. This is the perfect post-meal digestif. It really feels like the ultimate winter sipper, especially when you get a little water in there to let it bloom in a big old snifter glass. Diplomático Single Vintage Diplomatico The rum is made up of a blend of rums from Demerara Distillers world-famous stills, the Enmore (wooden Coffey still), the Versailles (single wooden pot still), and the Albion (Savalle still). It is worth noting that all the rums in the El Dorado range boast differing components in their blend. It is not a case of the same rum(s) being aged longer. There’s a clear sense of very dark, almost burnt molasses on the nose that’s counterpointed by a spicy tobacco smoke. The palate introduces orange oils next to the Christmas spices and plenty of bittersweet oak. A dried fruit edge arrives and really drives home the Christmas cake spiciness while all that oak and tobacco emboldens the finish’s slow fade. The El Dorado Rare Collection will likely need little introduction. This is a rum from the EnmoreEHP(Edward Henry Porter – original owner of what was the Enmore Estate) Wooden Coffey Still.

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Guyana was a pristine land inhabited by Arawaks and Caribs when Christopher Columbus came ashore in 1498, though it was not produced on a large scale until the late 1700s, roughly a century later than in the rest of the Caribbean. As Guyana’s plantation owners entered the sugar industry late, they were able to import advanced equipment for milling sugarcane and the industry exploded. I seem to have enjoyed this more than others. I personally found it to be equally as good as some of the Velier Demerara’s I have tried. El Dorado isn’t Rum in the Raw, though: It’s a smooth and sophisticated rum that’s well worth seeking out. Available in nearly a dozen variations, I tried three of its oldest bottlings. All are 80 proof. I’m a huge fan of Demerara rums and El Dorado rum in particular. This bottle was a very welcome Christmas treat. It has long been a rum I simply must try. Unusually, I found that this rum needed little by way of dilution with water. A drop or two opened it up slightly but its surprisinglyeasy going for a rum of this age. Maybe that is due to it being a column distilled rum rather than Pot still?

The finish a medium length offering quite a lot of spicy oak and you get a nice tingle on the tongue which takes a long time to die down. Allowing you to savour some of the less immediate notes – a little leather, a touch of tobacco. There is also a quite familiar Enmoresmokiness to the finish.

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Doubt around the age statements have been suggested (by the usual suspects in the rum world) however when you consider how much “bulk” rum DDL produce and either bottle themselves or sell on, I would suggest that such a thriving business concern can certainly afford to age their rums.

Personally speaking I cannot give any rum a 10 because I do not believe a perfect rum exists. The late great Vince Lombardi once said, "Gentlemen, we are going to relentlessly chase perfection, knowing full well we will not catch it, because nothing is perfect. But we are going to relentlessly chase it, because in the process we will catch excellence. I am not remotely interested in just being good."" The finish is perhaps just a touch dry and ends with a surprising amount of vanilla wrapped into the oak baking spice. A delicious chocolate almond fade is evident. At the end of each of my sample sessions, my mouth is heated with delicious oak and baking spice, yet my throat has felt no burn whatsoever. There is a feeling of sublime richness. The Afterburn 10/10 I didn't think I'd come across a bottle of this considering how limited the selections in the regional liquor stores are. However one store had this behind the counter on the top shelf and I had enough cash on hand to get a bottle.Musty oak sits next to a real rummy funkiness on the nose. The palate has a nice underbelly of Christmas cake with plenty of spice, dried fruit, and nuts that are counterpointed by that wood, funk, plus a hint of minerality. The finish is surprisingly short, sweet, spicy, and centered on the old oak barrels. The Enmore1993 is a 21 year oldrum – I’m not totally sure when it was bottled but its maturation must have ceased in 2014 tomake it a 21 year old rum. My suggestion is to sip this rum neat at room temperature to enjoy all the nuances. The addition of a little ice causes the rum to become somewhat drier and less sweet, which may be preferred by some. Demerara is also a name tied to sugar, an extension of which is rum. Specifically, Demerera signifies the rum of Guyana, of which many call as the world’s best. Demerara rum, as you might expect, is produced on the banks of the Demerara River, just outside of Guyana’s capital of Georgetown. All Demerara rum is distilled in Guyana, regardless of where it may be aged and bottled. The rum is derived from sugarcane grown along the banks and is distilled by the last remaining Guyanese distiller, Demerara Distillers Limited, or the DDL. Distilling was introduced in the 1850’s by the British and not long after there were more than 300 sugar estates producing their own rums, though by the end of the century that number began to drop along with the number of sugar plantations. By the 1930s there were 230 operating sugar plantations and in 1958, only 18. Each estate produced its own distinctive rum and they were given their own marks to identify the origin, for example, PM is Port Morant. These rums were shipped to England and the trading name Demerara Rum was established. Flavor Characteristics and the Coffey Still