El Dorado 12 Year Old Rum
El Dorado 12 Year Old Rum is a 40% ABV (80 proof) Demerara rum from Guyana, blended from rums aged a minimum of 12 years in ex-bourbon American oak casks at the Diamond Distillery — the last remaining distillery in Guyana. This 750mL bottle carries the deep, estery character of Demerara Distillers' heritage stills. Order aged rum online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 40% (80 proof)
- Size: 750mL
- Age: Minimum 12 years (some components considerably older)
- Origin: Demerara, Guyana — Demerara Distillers, Diamond Distillery
- Stills: EHP Wooden Coffey, Metal Coffey, Port Mourant double wooden pot (1732), Enmore wooden Coffey (1880)
Guyana's Heritage Stills in a Glass
Few rums can claim this kind of provenance. El Dorado 12 is distilled on wooden stills found nowhere else on earth — including the Port Mourant double wooden pot still dating to 1732 and the Enmore wooden Coffey still of 1880, the only functional greenheart-wood Coffey still in the world. Those stills give Demerara rum its signature estery richness: a lush tropical-fruit-and-spice nose with honey and dark sugar, mellow and full-bodied with rich fruit and spice on the palate, and a delightful, elegant, dry finish (the distillery's own tasting note). Gold Medal & Best in Class at the IWSC London in 2008, 2009, and 2010, per retailer attribution. Explore more El Dorado rums or the wider rum collection.
Tasting Notes
Dates, toffee, dark sugar, marzipan, and cherry with cinnamon on the nose; baked apple, dried date, clove, and dark chocolate on the palate with a thread of oak tannin. The finish is dry and lingering, with espresso and oak.
How to Enjoy
Neat or with a single large cube — this is a sipping rum first. It also anchors a serious rum Old Fashioned, where the dry finish keeps the cocktail from turning sweet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is El Dorado rum made?
In Demerara, Guyana, by Demerara Distillers Limited at the Diamond Distillery — the country's last remaining distillery.
What does "12 Year Old" mean on El Dorado?
Every rum in the blend is at least 12 years old, aged in ex-bourbon casks in Guyana's tropical climate; some components are considerably older.
What makes Demerara rum different?
The heritage wooden stills — including an 18th-century double wooden pot still — produce an unusually rich, estery spirit you won't find in column-still rums.
For one of the great aged rums of the Caribbean, buy El Dorado 12 Year Old Rum online from Del Mesa Liquor — pickup or delivery in San Diego, CA.