We have reached number 16 in my Countdown, and this is already the third entry for Dictador Rum. Dictador is produced in Colombia on the Caribbean coast at Cartagena de Indias City. Rather than being produced from molasses, the rum is produced from the virgin honey of sugar cane which has been distilled upon a stainless steel alembic, and aged using Dicatador’s unique take on the solera-style aging system.
Dictator’s solera aging system is a cascading process where younger rums are aged in oak casks and then blended with older rums. The aged rum are arranged in different flights with the oldest distilled rum on the lowest levels of the Solera. The younger rums are placed on the upper levels with the very youngest rums at the top. As the rum is pulled from the lowest barrels for bottling, the barrels are not fully emptied, and those barrels (about half full) are then topped up with rum from the levels just above. This marrying of old and new softens the fiery younger rum and provides the final blended rum with a refined smoothness and flavor not found in ordinary rums.
Here is a link to my full review of the 16th Best Rum of 2014, the Dictador 12 Year Solera:
# 16 Rum – Dicatador 12 Year Solera
I am even more impressed now, than I was when I received my first taste of several of the Dictador 12, a few years ago. I have been told by the producers of this rum that the average age of their 12 Year Solera Rum has increased by a few years since it was first introduced, which perhaps explains why its score has crept up in this most recent review. The Dictador 12 Year Solera is a complex rum full of oak nuances and dry fruit which achieves a full flavour while maintaining proper balance and complexity.
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Note: You may follow my Countdown list of the 25 Best Rums of 2014 here: The Rum Howler – Top 25 Rums of 2014
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Of course the House of Angostura remains famous for its world-class bitters; however, it has also become well know for the rum which is produced by their five column still, under the direction of Master Distiller, John P. Georges. Angostura 1824 pays homage to the company’s humble beginnings in Angostura, Venezuela, and it is the #17 rum in my countdown of the best rums of 2014.
This unusual rum in its very unusual bottle checks in as the 19th best of 2014!
The Dictador 20 Year Old Rum, is a solera aged rum which is taken from the solera at the point where the age of the rum within that solera row is at least 20 years of age. Some older rum is certainly within those barrels as well.) This rum is bottle at 40 % alcohol by volume.
The Rum Howler Blog 