Hampden Launches Rum Fire Velvet

Hampden launches the long awaited Gold Rum of Distinction

The Gold Standard

Since winning the Gold Medal from the IWSC Competition earlier in 2012 for its Rum Fire Brand in the category of "Best White Rum", Hampden  recently unveiled the long awaited "Hampden Gold".

Hampden Gold is a rich Gold Rum directly from Hampden Estate in Trelawny, Jamaica. Using techniques created centuries ago, Hampden Gold was developed exclusively for the very sophisticated markets in the UK and the EU.

Rum Connoisseurs will immediately identify the true authentic taste of this unique rum.

 Distribution by:

UK: E&J Brands & Services

ICO Access Self Storage

Croydon Road Industrial Estate

1 Tannery Close

Beckenham BR3 4BY

Tel: 0208 691 9433

www.eandjbrands.co.uk

EU: Haromex Development GmbH

Weihersfeld 45

D-41379.Brüggen

Tel. +49-2163-957315 Fax +49-2163-957325

www.haromex.com

Gold For Rum Fire

GOLD . GOLD

Published by - The Daily Gleaner: Monday, August 13, 2012

TRELAWNY- BASED Rum Fire White Overproof Rum from Hampden Estate in Trelawny, Jamaica, was awarded its first gold at this year's International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC). The brand had been previously awarded two silver medals, the first in September 2011 in the Ministry of Rums blind tasting competition held in San Francisco,California, where it was the only Jamaican brand in the category to be awarded a medal. The second was awarded in April this year by the International Rum (XP) Expert Panel - comprised of 80 international rum experts - at the Miami Rum Renaissance Festival.

Of the hundreds of medals awarded this year to various wines and spirits from all over the world, Rum Fire was the only brand entered from Jamaica to win a gold. Of note, Appleton Estate Reserve Eight Year Old won a silver outstanding medal. The three other rums that were listed as Jamaican rums (indicating that some Jamaican rum is used to make it) that won medals were Sainbury's Superior Dark Rum, Sainsbury's Superior White Rum and Brave Navigator, The Spiced Spirit. They were all awarded silver medals.

Ten rums in addition to Rum Fire were awarded gold medals this year. The list is as follows:
Admiral Rodney Extra Old St Lucia Rum
Captain Morgan Black Spiced Rum
Doorly's Fine Old Barbados Rum 12 YO
Dos Maderas Luxus Doble Crianza Rum 10 + 5
El Dorado Rum 21 YO
Key Caribbean Dark Rum 4 YO
Plantation Rum Grande Reserve 5 YO
Plantation Three Stars Blended White Rum
Woods 100 Old Navy Rum

Rum Fire was the sole overproof rum gold award recipient.

Rum Fire has seen some growth locally in the past year, since its launch in March 2011. Although it is a mammoth task to gain market share in such a highly saturated and (almost) monopolised industry, it may not be insurmountable in the months and years to come, particularly if awards like this keep rolling in.

Quality

Reacting to the win, director of marketing at Rum Fire, Christelle Harris states, "There may be a dozen or more white overproof rums on the local market, but very few have accolades like the ones we seem to be collecting and that speaks to the quality of what we can, are and will continue to produce at Hampden Estate. The IWSC is no joke. It is certainly something to be very proud of - to say we have been awarded an IWSC gold, especially considering we beat off competition from some of the world's most sought after, aged, and even extra aged (up to 21 years) Caribbean rums."

Harris reinforced that the team at Hampden Estate will be working assiduously to ensure that the product continues to satisfy the palates of everyone, from connoisseurs and social drinkers to chefs and mixologists worldwide.

News Flash, Rum Fire Wins GOLD at IWSC

Hampden Rum Company is proud to announce that Rum Fire was awarded a Gold Medal in the White Overproof Category at the recent 2012  International Wine and Spirits Competition, The competition is one of the most prestigious in the world and is based not just on organoleptic judgement, but where all entries also undergo chemical analysis in order to ensure that the highest quality standards are achieved and maintained.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those that have supported Hampden over the years. In particular, our many visitors to the Distillery that wrote about the  rum making traditions at Hampden as well as their positive experiences while visiting with us.  We would also like to thank our customers for their fervent support, our friends for the passion they express to others as they tell them of Rum Fire, and finally to our fantastic team at the Hampden Rum Company and Distillery. without which this would not have been possible.

Explore the Art of Rum - Hampden Rum Fire

Tasting Notes

We would like to thank Dave Russel for the wonderful notes he wrote about Hampden Distillery and in particular his tasting notes on Rum Fire.  The following are excerpts from his article........." Very Smooth. Don’t be fooled by the absence of color. While Rum Fire is silvery and perfectly clear, this potent rum makes its presence known immediately after pouring. Scents anxiously leap from the bottle like flame from a fire. Bouquet is high ester all the way, as if you were entering the building where Hampden Estate keeps its fermentation tanks. Aromas are wildly pungent, you are transported to the distillery’s smells of decaying dunder, by organic aromas of rotting tropical fruit and vegetal sugarcane grassiness, but somehow Rum Fire smells perversely, appealingly sweet."


Dave continues........." AnecdotesIn all truth, Hampden Estate is the most different distillery I have ever visited or heard of. It is difficult to overstate the many facets that make Rum Fire overproof rum unique."

In Daves opinion ..." If Rum Fire were a date, she’d be the kind you could never take home to mother. In fact, you'd probably skip dinner altogether. Straight to the action; she’s always ready and you’d better be up for it, for soon after enjoying the pleasures of Rum Fire, you’ll be looking for a comfy place to sit and appreciate her charms.

The most popular overproof rums in America are closer to neutral spirits than anything showing characteristic rum flavor. That has given the category a bad name. Shame, because Rum Fire unequivocally shows us that overproof doesn’t mean underflavored. Rum Fire is the first rum produced by Hampden for sale to the local market. Distribution in the USA and Germany are in the works. Rum Fire is going to put heat on the overproof rum category, and a new generation of fantastic cocktails will happen. Great rum, great timing."

The rum team at Hampden salutes Dave for his review and wish him all the best in his travels to the world's most unique distilleries.

For more information you can log on to Dave's Rum Gallery - Tasting Notes at http://www.rumgallery.com/rum-fire.html 

Meet Hampden's Rum Company - Director of Marketing

Christelle Harris,
Hampden's Rum Company Director of Marketing.

What many may not know is that the energy behind the success of Rum Fire is a direct result of the unwavering and steadfast commitment of Christelle in the marketing  as well as  meeting the day to day challenges that comes with strategies necessary to penetrate a difficult rum market.   Her responsibilities covers the marketing of Rum Fire both locally and internationally as well as for  product  development.  Christelle is also the company's goodwill ambassador that shares the best of Trelawny, it's beauty, it's people and the great Pot Rums of Hampden.

Christelle holds a B.A. (Hon.) in Political Science and Spanish from the University of Toronto and studied acting with Joanne Baron, one of the great Meisner method decendants in Los Angeles. As a member of the DLM dance crew gave performances in several cities in Canada and the United States and was the first runnerup in the Miss Jamaica World 2006 contest.  She also founded and manages the Christelle Harris Charity Fund that has been instrumental in providing much needed equipment to the Bustamante Hospital for Children in Kingston as well as providing financial support to several schools in Trelawny.  As the granddaughter of Lawrence and Ruth Hussey, she brings a burning passion to the family business.

Since taking the position, she has organized marketing promotions in the USA, Europe and the United Kingdom and  hosted  visits to the distillery for many local and international rum stakeholders. Rum Fire has received two silver medals in international tasting competitions and was also nominated in the Berlin Rum Festival in the category of "Best Overproof Rum" and also received a nomination in the UK RumFest for the Golden Barrel Award for "Best New White Rum".

We wish Ms. Harris much success in this most difficult assignment and that she can rest assured that we will be there to provide all the support that she may need in the weeks and months ahead. 

Rum Fire meets Vegas

Christelle Harris

What an act to follow at the Bar and Night Club Convention in Las Vegas as Christelle Harris, Director of Marketing - Rum Fire, introduced the true fire of life - Rum Fire. Many found what others have already discovered, an exceptionally smooth vibrant rum that  brings good vibes to any party.

For more information, visit Rum Fire on Facebook.

Hampden's Rum Fire wins at 2012 RumXP International.

The RumXP International Tasting Competition was held at the Deauville Beach Resort on Miami Beach April 18 to 20 as part of the Miami Rum Renaissance Festival

More than 25 members of the International Rum Expert Panel participated and more than 100 of the finest rums in the world were presented for evaluation.

The RumXPs were sequestered in their tasting room for three days of blind tasting trials. The rums were grouped and judged in categories of white, gold, aged, old aged, premium aged, dark, spiced, flavored and overproof. Their collective expertise as a group of judges is unrivaled in the spirits world. Their combined experience spans many dozens of countries and hundreds of brands. They are authors, lecturers, trainers, historians, journalists, consultants, collectors, proprietors, mixologists and promoters of rum.

Hampden Rum Fire was awarded the 2012 RumXP - Silver Medal Award along with Appleton Estate Reserve and Bacardi. Rum Fire has been on the market since March 2011 and has made a significant impact on the rum world. Rum Fire also won the silver medal in the Ministry of Rum Competition in San Francisco in late 2011.

Rum Fire Tasting Notes

David Marsland and Drinks Enthusiast recently wrote a great article on "Rum Fire Tasting Notes" ..Excerpt's below.

Rum Fire - Reggae Rum Punch

Drinks Enthusiast

"There's a new overproof rum to excite and tantalize the drinking world, Rum Fire! Created and produced by the guys at Hampden Estate, a company that dates back to 1753, it’s back heeling the likes of Wray and Nephew to become a dominant force in the overproof category"......

"First bottled back in March 2011, Rum Fire has been making waves in its short life, being nominated at the Berlin Rum Festival in the category of ‘Best Overproof Rum’ and also receiving a nomination at the UK RumFest for the Golden Barrel Award for ‘Best New White Rum’. This year, Rum Fire won a Silver Medal in San Francisco for the Ministry of Rum competition".

We would like to thank David and Drinks Enthusiast for tasting Rum Fire and their great recipe for the "Reggae Rum Punch".


For the full article please click on the following link.

http://drinksenthusiast.wordpress.com/2012/05/18/rum-fire-tasting-notes/

Sip History at Hampden by "RUM CONNECTION"

On February 8, 2012  we were visited by the guys at the Rum Connection, and what a visit it was. They are truly excited about tradition, culture and  in bringing on-site information to their readers. Thanks for the support and be assured, Hampden will continue to bring the very best organic and sustainable principles to the making of it's rums forged through hundreds of years of unbroken tradition.


For the full article, please click on the following link.
http://rumconnection.com/uncategorized/hampden-estate/

A visit to Hampden

Recently we were visited by  Mr. Nick Ferris of the Rum Collective and would like to thank him for his kind words and  a great review.

"Immediately my nose fills with .romas of rum, but more than that. It's that big bold pot still kind we love in Jamaican rums. The passing of this liquid landmark or rather olfactory threshold brings us to the home of one of the oldest sugar estates in Jamaica, dating back to 1753. Today, under direction of the Hussey Family, this historical site has a bright future, heated up by their relatively new white overproof rum called, RumFire."

Nick Feris

For the full article see "The Rum Collective" at

http://www.therumcollective.com/2012/01/past-and-present-tour-of-hampden-estate.html

Video views of Hampden Distillery

Hampden Sugar Estate dates back some three hundred years and have retained the history, techniques and knowledge through 11 generations. It produces distinctive Marks (types of rum) known for centuries throughout Europe, England, Scotland, South America and other destinations where they are used to flavor and blend many retail rum brands. Viewing these slides will take you back in time. 


Click on the link below. We hope you enjoy it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpUr0StcH9A