Major Medal Haul by Hampden Estate

5th German Rum Festival - Berlin

                                  Recently, the Daily Gleaner reported the following.

"Rum distiller and manufacturer Hampden Estate, which is based in Trelawny, made its owners, Everglades Farms Limited, and Jamaica proud recently by copping a total of four medals at the recent ShowRum Tasting Competition in Rome, Italy; and the 5th Annual Berlin Rum Festival in Germany.

The estate, which was acquired in the 2010 government divestment by the Hussey family-owned Everglades Farms Limited, started their impressive medal haul at the ShowRum Tasting Competition by first winning the 'Best In Class' awards in the 'Pot Still & Blended Rum' category and top in the 'Overproof Rum' class for its Rum Fire Velvet.  At the 5th Annual Berlin Rum Festival, the ever-popular Rum Fire walked away with third place in the 'Navy Strength/ Overproof Category', while Hampden Estate Gold took the runner-up spot in the Dark & Gold segment.

The four medals garnered by Hampden Estates take their tally to 15 medal since winning the first award in September 2011, when Rum Fire took the runner-up spot in the Ministry of Rums Tasting Competition held in San Francisco, California. Their medal count breaks down as follows: eight gold, four silver and one bronze.

  

                                             

HIGHLY RESPECTED

"We know that the rums are highly respected among the rum-consuming communities in Europe," said Christelle Harris, director of marketing for Hampden Estate. "The fans know and love the fact that Hampden is the only distillery in the world still making rum the way it was done in the 1700s."

"Such indigenous quality cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world, and it is always rewarding to be acknowledged for that. It is great that our brands can be celebrated by professionals whose opinions are highly valued within the industry, "added Harris, in reference to Hampden's product being judged alongside a total of 40 spirits from all over the world.

Hampden's rum products are available in Jamaica, the United States, England, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Italy.'

Disney Cruise Line inks deal with Hampden Rum Tour

Trelawny is one of the most picturesque parishes in Jamaica and has remained predominantly unspoilt for the past 250 years. Hampden Estate sits within the famed Queen of Spain Valley, so named by the Spaniards when they were captivated by it's vast natural beauty.  Falmouth, the capital of Trelawny is a fine example of an authentic British Colonial Township and is a United Nations World Heritage Site.

Outram Hussey File Photo: Falmouth Pier

Today, Falmouth is one of the largest and finest port destination in the Caribbean and is designed to dock the world's largest cruise ships. Hampden Estate, one of the oldest and most authentic estates in Trelawny is located within 40 minutes of the pier.  With these attributes it was a logical choice for Disney to team with Hampden to provide one of the worlds most authentic rum tour experience.

On this tour you will:

Meet your guide and board coaster bus for an approximately 35-minute drive through the rural Jamaican countryside, passing sugarcane fields on your way to Hampden Estate. Jamaica, originally a sugar plantation and rum store. As you approach Hampden Estate you will appreciate why the early Scottish settlers ventured here to seek their fortunes in sugar and rum.  

Arrive at the estate to a welcome rum punch beverage at the visitor's center, where you will receive an introduction, learn the rich history of the estate and process of rum making.
 
Enjoy an approximate 60-minute guided tour of the grounds, including the distillery, where rum continues to be made very much like it was 260 years ago.
 
Return to the visitors center for approximately 60-minutes for rum samples, snacks and souvenir shopping before the approximately 35-minute drive back to the pier.

For more information on this tour you can go directly to:

Web Portal at Disney Hampden Rum Tour

Sweet Jamaican Waters That Make Rum Fire Great

At Hampden Estate we receive many visitors and earlier in the year we were visited by Mr. Steve Bennett who write posts for The Uncommon Caribbean, a publication that celebrate the undiscovered charms of Caribbean travel and culture. Steve said of Hampden

The Hampden Distillery Dam

 "The whole may be greater than the sum of its parts, as Aristotle once opined, but I still say you need quality parts to produce the finest things. A Ferrari just wouldn’t be a Ferrari with a four-cylinder Honda engine under the hood, you know?







In much the same way, Rum Fire Overproof Rum could never be as fantastic and authentically Jamaican as it is without the natural elements that inhabit the Hampden Estete Distillery where it’s made in Trelawny.

Among the oldest and most revered estates in Jamaica, Hampden dates all the way back to 1753. Sugar was king then, but today the Estate chiefly builds upon its strong rum heritage, producing the world’s most eagerly sought after heavy pot still rums. The great folks at Hampden Estate maintain the authenticity of yesteryear in their current line up of rums the easy way: they simply follow the same old rum-making recipes and techniques that built the Estate’s legend over the centuries.

They also help Mother Nature do her thing, promoting sustainability in all aspects of their operations in order to maintain the unique environmental conditions that give rise to all the quality parts that go into producing their fine rums. These quality parts include everything from the prized Hampden Estate sugar cane and various tropical fruits (all of it still harvested by hand), to the Estate’s proprietary yeast cultures, and even all the water pictured above.

Walking here along the wall that holds back all this special water, watching as fish meander beneath the lilies and dragonflies dart to and fro, it’s well apparent that this is one place where rum-maker and Mother Nature are coexisting beautifully.

We want to thank Steve for this wonderful article as it represent so much of what we do and the authenticity of Hampden Rums.

Please read more of Steve's article at Sweet Jamaican Waters That Make Rum Fire Great

Washington DC, Welcomes Hampden Rums

 

An Evening With Hampden at The City 

Club of Washington

Founded in 1987, The City Club of Washington is located in the heart of the business and theater district. The City Club is where a diverse, dynamic and forward looking membership builds upon the heritage and principles of its Founding Board of Governors through business, social and community activities.

  Recently, The City Club of Washington, D.C. held its Annual Pink Tie Soiree Charity in October, which included a rum tasting featuring Hampden Estate's rums, Rum Fire and Hampden Gold...these premium rums, in various blends and cocktails, were introduced to a new, yet initiated group of club members and their guests, renowned for their knowledge of the rums of the world. The charity classic event also raised needed funding to support the early detection and treatment of breast cancer of which Ms. Shondia McFadden-Soberi, a cancer survivor was the featured guest speaker.

What the group experienced was more than just your typical spirits tasting – it was the introduction and exposure to the history of rums of Jamaica as well as an appreciation, as told through a narrative by Outram Hussey of Hampden Estate, that placed into context the history surrounding the reintroduction of one of Jamaica's oldest historic estates with its new modern technologies and ecological practices that not only have produced a new wonderfully rich rum, but also the contribution of new sustainable industry practices to the Parish of Trelawny, Jamaica . Hampden Estate is a subsidiary of Everglades Farms Ltd that operates the Long Pond Sugar Factory and have invested significantly in the rebuilding of the economic base of the region. Hampden rums represent a revival  in the longstanding traditions of rum making and represent the continuing of the culture of authentic pot rum fermentation and maturation.

Outram Hussey in conversation with a Rum Connoisseur

 

From Hampden Estate, this wonderful white overproof rum, Rum Fire, made from fermented sugarcane juice and molasses, is unique in flavor and style. Its hint of woodiness adds to the well balance, clean taste. Rum Fire’s aromatic flavor adds a “touch of zing” to a refreshing fruit drink or punch. The Hampden Distillery, as part of its sustainable practices, is the only distillery in Jamaica that recycle’s its Dunder, (a byproduct of the distillation process) back into the making of its rums. This along with other natural processes, is one of the reasons that Hampden Estates Rum Fire and Hampden Gold are international award winning premium rums! 

In short, an evening of history, the culture of rum, the taste of this new rum spirit, all in a lively upbeat Jamaican vibe!!!!