The current distillery located near
Barquisimeto,
Venezuela dates from
1959 and was built by a company called
Licorerías Unidas S.A. (LUSA), which was created by
Seagram's International Ltd and local
Rum producers.
Seagram's was the major shareholder with 51% of the shares and the key international brands. LUSA started operating at the end of the year
1959.
Before that, there was a small distillery producing local Spirits since 1945 but nothing compared to the distillery that was built after, in terms of size and distillation systems.
LUSA ran from
1959 to 2002, then it became
Destilerías Unidas S.A. (DUSA). The name of the company changed when the distillery (and 5 brands, among which is
Diplomático) was purchased by its current owners the Ballesteros, Díaz, Curbelo and Arispe families.
DUSA means "
United Distillers," a name that reflects the company's core know-how. The distillery continues to produce Rum for both the home market and export, along with Vodka,
Gin, Brandy and Liqueurs amongst other things.
The facility is exceptional well kitted out with a multi-column, continuous distillation system, batch kettle and pot stills for the Rum alone. Along with large pot stills for making
Whiskey, and a pot still for making Gin.
Aging warehouses are located nearby. The facility also has its own bottling line.