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. Although the rum is produced upon a stainless steel alembic, the inner workings of this still contain more than enough copper such that it functions in basically the same manner as a copper pot still.
Interestingly, the choice of the distillery to use sugar cane honey rather than molasses is based upon a peculiarity of Colombian government policy. It seems that the country has mandated that automobiles in Colombia must use a certain percentage of biofuels in conjunction with gasoline as their fuel source. As molasses is the most readily available source of biofuel, almost all molasses produced in Columbia is earmarked for biofuel production. This means that the folks at Dictador Rum have little choice but to produce and use their own sugar cane honey for rum production.
The Dictador 20 Year Old Rum, is a solera aged rum which is taken from the solera at the point where the average 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.)
Here is a link to my review of the #93 Spirit in my Rum Howler 2015 Top 100 Spirits Countdown:
#93 – Dictador 20 Year Old Solera Rum
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
We have reached into the top 20 rums of 2014, and Dictador is making its second appearance.
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 