Located in La Miel, Venezuela, Distillerias Unidas S.A. (DUSA) produces the Diplomático rum line. Using a combination of molasses and sugarcane honey as the base ingredient of their rums. After fermentation, they use a combination of column, pot, and batch kettle stills to distill the liquid that becomes the components of their rum blends. After aging their rums primarily in used bourbon barrels, they blend the rums to create the final product. For the Planas expression, the rum is a blend whose components are aged up to six years and then charcoal filtered and bottled at 47% ABV in Panama City, Panama.
Diplomático Planas Rum
Appearance
The bottle is the standard short-necked 750 ml bottle that is used for the Diplomático line. The white and blue label shares the basic details of the rum. It also notes that it is named for a region of Venezuela located at the base of the San Andes mountain, where the sugarcane is grown for the distillery. The plastic-capped synthetic cork is secured to the bottle with a blue and white wrap. After it is removed, the image of founder Don Juancho Nieto Meléndez is revealed.
The liquid is clear in the glass and bottle, and swirling it creates a medium band around the glass. This band thickens and then slowly beads up and releases a single wave of legs before evaporating, leaving a ring of beads and residue around the glass.
Nose
When I poured the rum into the glass, the aroma of rich floral vanilla filled the air. As the liquid settled, the vanilla note created the baseline, with notes of fresh-cut coconut, honeyed banana, a nip of citrus, black pepper, and roasted coffee bean rounding out the experience.
Palate
The earthy vanilla and fruit notes, along with the swirl of alcohol, condition the palate with its initial rush of flavors. Additional sips have the vanilla note transition to more of a toffee note as the black pepper, roasted coffee, and oak tannins infuse the flavor profile. The fruit flavors rise and fall quickly, leading to a long toffee finish.
Review
Anytime I review a rum in this age range, I have certain baseline expectations. Usually, a clear rum in this category might have a few notes for the imbiber to experience and leave a lot of room for the cocktail creator to build on. This rum provided surprising depth with a pleasant range of flavors to experience. I now have an improved understanding of why it performs so well in classic rum cocktails like Daiquiris and El Presidente, with the flavor hooks creating opportunities for it to work well with more modern creations. Perhaps the most interesting surprise is that the rum, while in the upper end of the price range of its category, with consideration of what the flavor profile delivers, is quite a bargain. An excellent example of what Diplomático rum blenders can create using some of the youngest rums in their aging facilities.
