It was not so long ago that Mr. Wolf was invited to visit Guyana for the ostensible purpose of "...building our knowledge with respect to both Demerara Distillers and the Country of Guyana". He took the trip (who wouldn't) but we never learned much about the "Country of Guyana", and I could never find the article he claimed he'd post. What we did get was a few tourist type snapshots "...here's me standing by the falls... standing on top of a still... looking into a fermentation tank", et al.
Very educational. We did learn that several members of the entourage were annointed "Connoiseurs of Rum" by DDL. A real honor, I'm sure.
So how is this relevent now?
It's relevent because Mr. Wolf just posted a review for El Dorado 25, which - of course - got a top score, ending with the Wolfboy positing: "...I'm reminded of another great.. the El Dorado 15... It seems to me that these two rums must share a similar heritage." That's what most everybody assumes. All the El Dorado's must surely share the same heritage, with the primary difference being one of aging or perhaps blending, right? Sorry pal, but you're gonna have to go to Capn Jimbo's Remedial Summer School for Quasimodo Reviewers...
CJ's Summer School for "Special" Reviewers
Here's the deal. Unlike say Flor de Cana, Barbancourt, Ron Viejo de Caldas and many more too numerous to mention, the El Dorados are very, very different from one another. You'd think a guy who actually visited the distiller - even on a paid-for, stroke trip - would have noticed or learned that. You see, El Dorado is really a conglomeration of multiple stills brought together from what was once a goodly number of different distilleries (think 200 to 380), but which went out of business, or were otherwise absorbed by the DDL (Demeraran Distillers, Ltd).
Sum total the DDL (El Dorado) has a multiplicity of stills. Wooden, metal, single column, double column, five column, low capacity, high capacity, and pot stills. Many of these are leaking and not very impressive (compare to the spotless still houses of Scotland). Here's the actual list of current stills in use:
(Credit to Cocktails Old Fashioned)# 1x Wooden Coffey Still by Enmore Sugar Estate
# 1x Single Wooden Pot Still von Versailles Sugar Estate
# 1x Double Wooden Pot Still von Port Mourant Sugar Estate
# 2x French Savalle Four-Columns Still von Uitvlugt Sugar Estate
# 3x Two-Columns Metal Coffey Stills
# 1x Two-Columns Metal Coffey-like Still
# 1x Five-Columns Metal Continuous Still
# 1x Re-Rectification Still
# 2x Metal Pot Stills
Twelve stills in all, all naturally producing very different product. The idea that the 25 year old has the same heritage as the 15, or any other El Dorado is, well, what gets you into summer school. At least they're both rum, lol. Let's be specific.
The 25 year old is predominantly made from two rums: first from a two-column Guyanan wooden Coffey still (Enmore) and second, from a four column metal French Savalle still. On the other hand the 15 is predominatly from a double wooden pot still(s) and from a two column metal Coffey still. Of course the difference is substantial, as the pot still batch production of the 15 tends to be more flavorful, while the two and four column stills of the 25yo was designed to pump out high production but much thinner, less flavorful (higher alcohol) product.
Both products are blended with lesser amounts of other column and pot stills, but it is fair to say the 25 is predominantly a column stilled product, while the 15 is predomantly pot stilled. I won't bore you with the other ED's but suffice it to say they too differ, and more significantly. As a result it is impossible to do comparative vertical tastings with ED's to examine the effects of aging (as you can with many other rums).
Honestly, you'd think a guy who stood damn still on the damn still for a picture, and had the chance to ask some real questions of his hosts, might just know that. Does he?
You decide.
