DDL's erroneous claim that its El Dorado cream liqueur had won a Gold Medal at the 2003 International Wine and Spirits Competition in London has been characterised as an oversight and genuine mistake.

In full page and near full-page ads that ran two days last week in various newspapers including Stabroek News, the company, as part of a launch for the product's new packaging, had highlighted the London prize. DDL did win gold medals for its 15-year-old and 5-year-old rums at the competition but not for its Demerara Golden Rum Cream Liqueur.

Stabroek News contacted Maryan Hook, Sales & Marketing Manager for the company which organises the competition who confirmed the information.

A subsequent DDL press release, used to announce the product launch last Wednesday at Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel, made no reference to the International Wine and Spirits Competition. Instead it cited a gold medal won as part of a rating by the Beverage Tasting institute of Chicago.

DDL did win a Gold Medal from the institute for its cream liqueur in 2002 as highlighted on the institute's web site, tastings.com.

When contacted yesterday, Bernard Ramsay, head of Creative Advertising Agency, which handles DDL's account, said the reference to the London competition was the agency's mistake, in part because they were waiting for the institute's medal to come from Trinidad to use in the advertisement.

Since it was late the agency used the wrong medal and wrong text.

He said when the copy was sent to DDL for them to sign off on, this "genuine mistake" was overlooked. He said Creative Advertising would put the matter right.

An official of DDL when contacted yesterday simply said the ad was an oversight.