B6C8A043-C02E-4AE9-8EA2-CBFE9E57D72FGuyana Diamond Velier
Velier Diamond Old Demerara Rum 1988 70cl bottle
Bottle
Aromas
Aged rum · 18 years · 59%

Velier Diamond Old Demerara Rum 1988

Rare praise here — the people who've tasted it call it a near-perfect Demerara, and the score backs them up. What sets it apart from the other Velier Diamonds is the fruit: loads of ripe strawberry and red berries, even an "Erdbeer-Yoghurt" note one taster couldn't get over. Under that sits smoky wood, vanilla, chocolate, glue and an oily, heavy body. The 59% barely shows.

The community says
  • Big red-berry fruit
  • Oily heavy body
  • Alcohol well hidden
Currently no offers for delivery to Germany.

The look inside the bottle

How does Velier Diamond Old Demerara Rum 1988 taste?

Aggregated from 13 community reviews.

Strawberry-forward Demerara, one for the shelf The consensus is unusual agreement at the top end — an intensely fruity Diamond several tasters rank among the best rums they've had. The only real catch is finding a bottle.

Perfect for

Velier collectors and Demerara devotees

Less suitable for

newcomers and anyone hunting an everyday bottle

Style & occasion

How the community classifies this rum. Each category takes you to similar rums.

5 of 13 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums

How is Velier Diamond Old Demerara Rum 1988 rated?

RumX’s 0–10 scale is strict: 9.7 sits in the “Excellent” band. 100% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 0% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →

Community voices

What does the community say?

0% rate it between 6 and 8. 5 selected write-ups from 13 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.

Review by Johannes

Johannes
Jun 20242,838 reviewsGermany
10.0/10

The perfect rum for me! Incredibly intense, complex, yet balanced and round. Lots of strawberry, some glue, wood. Differs very clearly from the other Diamonds.

Review by Jakob

Jakob
Jun 20241,429 reviewsSwitzerland
9.8/10

Stands out in the blind tasting of all Velier Diamonds with its comparatively very fruity-sweet nose. On the palate, bitter notes are added and the typical profile of Velier Diamonds becomes recognizable, however, the fruit notes remain very present, reminding me of overripe red berries (strawberries). Excellent drop and meanwhile a privilege to be able to taste it - great cinema.

Review by Gregers Nielsen

Gregers Nielsen
Gregers Nielsen
Dec 20211 reviewsDenmark
9.7/10

Insanely balanced, complex and well integrated. Powerful yet elegant and completely different to all the other Diamonds from Velier!

Review by Oliver

Oliver
Dec 20211,197 reviewsGermany
9.5/10

Totally awesome strawberry yogurt flavor! 🤯

Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰

Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
Apr 20225,556 reviewsDenmark
9.4/10

Luckily this was the last rum of the evening or all the other samples would have failed horribly in comparison. A great rum and again one that was hidden in the back of a top shelf at a tiki bar., where they had a rum aficionado. The nose is complex and well balanced with fruits, smoked Wood, vanilla and chocolate. The chocolate and vanilla really come out if you leave the empty glass for a while. The palate takes off where the nose finishes. Complex and well balanced with fruit, smoky wood, vanilla and a hint of coffee/mocha. The finish is incredibly long with wood, cherries, chocolate and vanilla. I know this is a rare bottle, but my oh my, what a great rum.

Expert reviews

2 critics scored it, averaging 9.7/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..

Expert review by Rob Bauer

Rob Bauer
9.7/10
Nose Rex tremendae majestatis! The first sniff literally explodes and manifests what's making these Velier Demeraras so special. It's the unbelievable fatness, richness and the exotic jungle associations, hence the pure uniqueness. Meaning the most addictive Patexx glues, pure coconut mark, Jasmine flowers from India and Ylang Ylang from China. A crazy load of strawberries and raspberries alright (what?!). Slightly reminiscent of the 1991 Caroni (Samba) at this point. First Velier Demerara delivering red fruits! Very very unusual. Fried manioc roots in coconut butter and some undefined jungle herbs. Fine cedar wood. On top: very pronounced notes of wood polish and new leather. Now it even feels a bit like Pibous 1996. After a while the sweetness develops into candyfloss and the leatherness into the smell of a freshly opened Montecristo Cigar Box. Rafinesse, elegance and a monstrous complexity, all in one distillate, ergo a to-die-for-bouquet. Palate Yes, almighty! Welcome to the jungle! Sweet fermented mangoes and plantains. Manioc roots in abundance. Bounty bar and all kinds of glues. Super sweet initial start and absolutely balanced. The distillate is fat and super heavy. Overripe Raspberries and Straweberries indicate a slight sourness. But paired with the gentle bitterness of dark chocolate it just adds to the complexity. These fruity and berried components are simply stunning. The alcohol is wonderfully integrated, almost non-existent. Have we mentioned an oily texture? Pure oil. Every little sip holds another surprise. In terms of column still rum it actually can't get any better. Finish 1300 pages long, like The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky, but way more lingering on the bright side of life. All on lovely raspberry and coconut mark, glues and rubber.
Read full review →

Expert review by Rob Bauer

Rob Bauer
9.7/10
Nose Rex tremendae majestatis! The first sniff literally explodes and manifests what's making these Velier Demeraras so special. It's the unbelievable fatness, richness and the exotic jungle associations, hence the pure uniqueness. Meaning the most addictive Patexx glues, pure coconut mark, Jasmine flowers from India and Ylang Ylang from China. A crazy load of strawberries and raspberries alright (what?!). Slightly reminiscent of the 1991 Caroni (Samba) at this point. First Velier Demerara delivering red fruits! Very very unusual. Fried manioc roots in coconut butter and some undefined jungle herbs. Fine cedar wood. On top: very pronounced notes of wood polish and new leather. Now it even feels a bit like Pibous 1996. After a while the sweetness develops into candyfloss and the leatherness into the smell of a freshly opened Montecristo Cigar Box. Rafinesse, elegance and a monstrous complexity, all in one distillate, ergo a to-die-for-bouquet. Palate Yes, almighty! Welcome to the jungle! Sweet fermented mangoes and plantains. Manioc roots in abundance. Bounty bar and all kinds of glues. Super sweet initial start and absolutely balanced. The distillate is fat and super heavy. Overripe Raspberries and Straweberries indicate a slight sourness. But paired with the gentle bitterness of dark chocolate it just adds to the complexity. These fruity and berried components are simply stunning. The alcohol is wonderfully integrated, almost non-existent. Have we mentioned an oily texture? Pure oil. Every little sip holds another surprise. In terms of column still rum it actually can't get any better. Finish 1300 pages long, like The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky, but way more lingering on the bright side of life. All on lovely raspberry and coconut mark, glues and rubber.

Details about Velier Diamond Old Demerara Rum 1988

A Column Still Rum from Guyana, bottled by Velier, at 59%.

CountryGuyana
DistilleryDiamond
BottlerVelier
CategoryColumn Still Rum
ABV59%
Volume70cl
Age18 years
Vintage1988
Limited edition51 bottles

Embed this rum on your blog Create widget →

Community purchases

9 bottles logged by 7 collectors.

A drinker & collector.

22% opened, 0 emptied and repurchased.

7 sealed 2 open 0 emptied

9 purchased · 13 tasted · 59 wishlist · as of

About the Diamond distillery

The Diamond distillery is located in Guyana. Rums from Diamond have been reviewed 5,310 times with an average of 8.3/10.

To Diamond →

You may also enjoy

Rum enthusiasts who like this rum have also given the following rums high ratings:

Price alerts · in the RumX app

Never miss a price drop.

Set a target price in the app, and we'll let you know as soon as the rum becomes available at that price from one of our partner stores. This works for any rum on your wish list.

★ 4.8/5 on App Store & Play Store
Oliver, founder of RumX Oliver · Founder

By rum lovers, for rum lovers

I'm Oliver, and RumX began in 2018 as a small passion project in Stuttgart, back then under the name Rum Tasting Notes.

What began as my digital tasting diary is now the world's most comprehensive platform for rum fans, today carried by a small team with Jakob, Lukas and Katharina, with Robert supporting us as a freelancer. We combine the collective intelligence of our community with an integrated marketplace, so you can choose with confidence, without paperwork, detours, or expert jargon.

Oliver, Stuttgart

About RumX →
53,000+ Active tasters
300,000+ Independent reviews
25,000+ Rums catalogued
★ 4.8/5 iOS & Android app
As featured in
Stern Stuttgarter Zeitung Rumporter fizzz About Drinks

Rating guide

RumX's 0–10 scale is strict. Here's what each band means.

9.0–10.0 Excellent your rum Stash as many as you can afford. Tell no one.
8.0–8.9 Very good Bank a backup. Tell everyone you meet.
7.0–7.9 Good Buy one and recommend it to your friends.
6.0–6.9 Pleasant Solid, super glad I drank it.
5.0–5.9 Average Totally acceptable.
4.0–4.9 Drinkable Not vocally complaining.
3.0–3.9 Poor Wish I was drinking something else.
2.0–2.9 Very poor Nothing nice to say.
1.0–1.9 Unpleasant No, that's not for me.
0.1–0.9 Inedible Pour it out.