El Dorado, belonging to Demerara Distillers Limited, is on the cusp of debuting a new collection of nine expressions which aims to explore the range of rum styles the distillery complex - Guyana's only rum distillery -  is able to achieve through the 14 operating distillation stills it houses, some of which are over 250 years old and made uniquely from Guyana's own greenheart wood, the hardest wood in the world.

One of the exciting expressions to come from the fold is a 2012 El Dorado High Ester Blend LBI / DHE that's bottled at 57% ABV cask strength. The expression is a blend of the two marques that have been aged in ex-Bourbon casks.

While we are familiar with the Diamond marque that's produced using a John Dore Double Retort Pot Still that has been in use since the 1950s, the twist here is that it'll be a high ester version with the specific DHE (Diamond High Ester) marque. El Dorado says that fermentation took place over months and distillation was done at a slow rate with high reflux, thereby producing ester levels in excess of 1,500 g/hL.

Guyana's Demerara River was home to numerous rum producing estates that have now consolidated into a single Diamond Distillery. (Image Source: Rum Auctioneer)

The more unusual marque in the blend is the LBI which stands for La Bonne Intention, and is produced using the French Savalle Multi-Column Still, which was first created in the 18th Century and named after the La Bonne Intention Estate at the East Coast of Demerara. As the story of Guyana's rum landscape goes, this was eventually brought to the Diamond complex as a result of numerous consolidations that eventually folded all of Guyana's distilleries into one single distilling complex that exists today. The LBI marque is rarely seen and is said to be a medium-bodied expression with a honeyed profile.

Together the unique blend of the two marques will create something totally new for the brand, and is said to be an expression that has aromas of figs, starfruit, an infusion of spices of cinnamon, clove, vanilla, balanced against mellower notes of toffee, honey and undertones of banana. On the palate, it is said to taste of orange peel, clove, dark chocolate, burnt caramel and then transition to a softer honeyed profile, with finally a finishing of spicy leather.

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team