El Dorado 12-year-old notches gold over 160 other blends Stabroek News May 13, 2000 The El Dorado 12-Year-Old rum which is bottled by Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) has won the "RumFest 2000 Gold Award" as the best among 161 rums that were recently taste-tested by 41 judges. At RumFest 2000 in Barbados, DDL's 12-Year-Old rum competed against the leading brands across the Caribbean as well as those from places such as Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Venezuela, Belize and Florida competing in the Regular, Premium, Spiced and Flavoured categories, said a press release last week from Creative Advertising and Marketing Services Limited. In this year's competition there were also new rums from Hawaii, Tahiti, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Trinidad and the United States. Currently DDL's El Dorado Special Reserve 15-Year-Old rum holds the distinction of being voted the "Best Rum Worldwide" for two straight years by the International Spirit Challenge, the release stated. Over the years, the El Dorado brand has consistently won top honours at all the major competitions internationally, the release added. DDL is the largest producer of bulk rum from the Caribbean and has working partnerships with several distributors worldwide.