Dictador rum has finally reached the Malaysian shores, with 4 expressions including their Fine and Rare which blurs the rum categories. This Colombian distillery not only produces rum to boot, but also their own style of gin. We speak to Diego Quintero Jaramillo, Asia-Pacific Sales Director to find out what is so unique about this rum.
Dictador Rum And Gins
Dictador rum leans towards the sweeter side on the nose, with scents reminiscent of caramel, almost chocolatey, and because of this, fits perfectly in cocktails such as Rum Old Fashioned or even for a Junglebird. With two expressions, the 12 Years is known for its smoothness, with the 20 Years being even more refined. We find our more about these expressions, including their gin.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I have been working in Wine & Spirits for more than 12 years, I have represented brands from Chile, Argentina, Scotland, Mexico, India, and an extensive list of origins. Three years ago, I contacted Dictador and offer offered them to hire me as their Sales Director for Latin-American markets, at the beginning of 2020 I moved to Australia to look after the Asian markets.
Dictador rum comes from Colombia. Can you tell us a bit about the history of this distillery?
The Parra family established its first distillery in the heart of Cartagena de Indias and from there knowledge is passed from father to son over successive generations. By 1951 through perseverance and hard work it became into one of the biggest private distilling and ageing facilities in Colombia, back on those days Parra family were also producing alcohol for government. Nowadays, we only produce Dictador Rum, big part of our distillery is abandoned and used for our Art Masters Project.
How did it get its name?
Dictador’s name came from Severo Arango y Ferro, nicknamed “El Dictador”, who in the 1700s oversaw trade between Spain and the colonies. In 1913, almost 180 years after the myth of El Dictador was conceived, one of his descendants established Destilería Colombiana. Don Julio Arango y Parra spent years researching the myth as well as the intricacies of rum production to become the finest Colombian rum producer in the Caribbean Zone, while dedicating his life to honouring his forefather’s legacy.
Can you tell us the difference between the rum categories?
Rum classification or categories is a big topic; colour, origin, raw material, ageing process, there are so many variables. The one that is used the most is the Gargano Classification; it looks similar in some way to Scotch Whisky categories.
Pure Single Rum – Molasses + 100% Batch Pot Still Distillation
Pure Single Agricole Rhum – Cane Juice + 100% Batch Pot Still Distillation
Single Blended Rum – Blend Of Traditional Column Still Distillation And Pot Still Distillation
Traditional Rum – Traditional Column Still Distillation
Modern Rum – Modern / Industrial Multi-Column Distillation
What sets Dictador apart from other styles of rum?
Dictador is not just stepping out because of our way of producing rum. We are the leading investment grade rum, our Fine & Rare (F&R) portfolio is blurring the lines between the spirits categories, we are adding new collaborations to our collections, and we are achieving record auction prices in the rum sector.
What are your current expressions?
Our range is wide, core range is already available in Malaysia, Dictador 12, Dictador 20, Dictador XO Insolent, Dictador XO Perpetual and our gins, Colombian Gin Ortodoxy and Perpetual. We are checking with our local partner, Single Malt, which expressions from our F&R portfolio we are going to launch during next year.
How is this rum usually enjoyed in Colombia?
Dictador is a sipping rum, we normally enjoy it neat or in the rocks, our Master Blender, Hernan, is a rum and cola drinker, when he is not trying it neat in tastings, he enjoys a refreshing rum and cola in Cartagena Old Town. A good cocktail for Dictador 12yo would be a Rum Fashioned; it doesn’t have too many ingredients so you can still feel the notes and aromas of the rum.
Can you share a cocktail recipe that will highlight this rum’s unique flavour?
Rum Old Fashioned.
Ingredients: –
- 2 oz Dictador 12YO rum
- 0.5 oz demerara syrup
- 4 dashes Angostura bitters
Preparation: –
Add ingredients into mixing glass & stir.
Dictador is available exclusively through Single & Available, Single Malt Sdn. Bhd. In Malaysia. Shop and find out more at singleandavailable.com.my, or visit its retail outlet in Bangsar Shopping Centre, Kuala Lumpur.
| PHOTOGRAPHY: SINGLE & AVAILABLE | WEBSITE: DICTADOR |