Hampden Estates adds rum capacity.

 

Rum distillers Hampden Estates says it is looking to boost output by 45 per cent after a US$1.5-million investment.

The producers of Rum Fire, Hampden Estate, and bulk rum for export, which is owned by the Hussey family-controlled Everglade Farms, has tripled the warehouse space it uses for ageing rum, added two 5,000-gallon copper pot stills, and increased cane-crushing capacity.

Managing Director Andrew Hussey says the company made the investment to meet increased and future demand for rum, measured in litres of absolute alcohol, or LAA.

“When Everglades Farms Limited acquired Hampden in 2009, it was producing only 140,000 LAA. This has increased significantly over the past decade, with the volume of confirmed orders for 2020 being 1,300,000 LAA.” Hussey told the Financial Gleaner.

He says the expansion was financed by borrowings from JMMB Bank and would position the company to do more exports, a segment that accounts for 95 per cent of its production.

“Hampden Estate Single Rum is one of the tropical aged rums distributed worldwide, with over 40,000 bottles being sold in Europe and the UK [United Kingdom] alone in the first quarter of distribution. We also have the Great House rum, which was originally intended to be sold locally in the distillery gift shop but which, due to worldwide demand, is now being produced for the international market,” Hussey said.

Hampden also produces unaged rum which is supplied to the food, liquor, and perfume industries, he said. The additional storage for aged rums will grow capacity from 2,700 barrels to 11,700 barrels, Hussey said. The addition of the two stills will allow the company to produce about 33,000 barrels of rum, up from around 23,000, Hussey added.

The company is also addressing its operational efficiencies, including conversion from Bunker C fuel to LNG to fire its boilers, through a ­partnership with New Fortress Energy.

neville.graham@gleanerjm.com

Hampden - The Original Trelawny Rum

The Rum Tasting Of The Century

Credits: La Maison Du Whisky

Very seldom in rum history do we see a confluence of events that would lead to the launching of a signature rum from one of the oldest distilleries in the world,  Hampden. The event was made possible by Luca Gargano in what would be called "The Rum Tasting of the Century". The event celebrated the launch of the Maison and Velier distributed Hampden Estate Rums. Luca reminded all that the Hampden Estate release, in fact celebrated an end to the colonial era in the rum world after 265 years as Hampden moved to bottle their own aged Trelawny rums.

Quotation from the invitation: Hampden Estate is one of the best rum distilleries in the world and after 265 years of rich history are about to release the first aged distillery bottlings. This rear event marks an important milestone in rum history and an opportunity to taste the past three centuries of rum bottlings, which characterize the long journey from colonial era to modern times.

The event was covered by many rum bloggers and rum enthusiasts and a good cover written by the "Rum Diaries Blog". Herein we highlight a few moments of the launch of Hampden Estate, Pure single Jamaican rum, on 13th. September in London. A select few journalists, bloggers and key distributors were invited to the tasting and launch.  There were some old vintages from Luca Gargano's private collection that were offered culminating with Hampden Estate for the 21st. Century.

Please visit the following link for more information.
https://www.lamaisonandvelier.com/the-hampden-estate-distillery-appoints-the-house-velier-as-worldwide-distributor/



By Outram J. Hussey

Pure Single Rums, Authentic Manufacturing and the "Guardians of Rum"

For rum lovers wanting that exquisite pure rum, having esters to affect the pleasure senses and having that extra smooth effect over palate, Hampden Single Rums delivers.

A recollection of events in the early years when the Hussey Family bought Hampden Distillery and the progressive moves toward the recognition of pure rums.

At Hampden, what is real rum? It is Rum that is pure, single, developed by artisans with the highest in fidelity as they remain faithful and loyal to the development of high quality, traditional rums, taken directly from stills without additives and enhancers to create a product of exquisite distinction, taste and affecting the senses in ways impossible by lesser creations.

While many enter the rum arena today with fancy labels, names, marketing hype and claims, we need to remember that many enter to follow the money, the notoriety or to be caught up in the moment. What we need to recognized, however, is that as we search for what is truly authentic, we quickly discover that the road to authenticity leads only to a few locations on the planet. Many of these have been around for hundreds of years, and one, Hampden, has been making rum using the same methods for more than 250 years with many select wood fermenters more than a century old.

Some years ago when the Hussey family bought Hampden, what was astonishing to find was that there were many rum buyers the world over that were still sending their orders to the distillery, although temporarily off-line at the time. I remember a backlog of orders and found many competitors contacting buyers to capitalize on its rumored closure. Buyers refused to relinquish their orders with Hampden, this loyalty was so profound that at the time, we figured there could only be one solution which resulted in Andrew Hussey and myself visiting with each of our buyers in Europe to inform them personally that their orders would be met. There, they explained the long association with Hampden, that their grandfathers would spend summers at the estate and that they would send parts for the sugar factory to ensure continued production. They were thrilled that another old-line family with strong loyalties to tradition had taken control of the distillery.

This was when Andrew and I became aware of the history, tradition and especially loyalty that rum buyers had for Hampden. One of these buyers traced their company’s trading in the West Indies back 300 years. These were buyers that knew rum, knew quality, knew authenticity and knew what it took to produce such rums. They were also convinced that they could get it nowhere else. In the universe of rums, Hampden stood supreme. We also came to discover that the buyers literally rushed to the still for the rum resulting in Hampden having little need to age rums. We later decided to utilize facilities of the old Sugar Factory to commence barreling and ageing of each of Hampdens special Marks.

Once Hampden’s retail rums entered the market (some directly from the stills) they began an aggressive and continuous collection of medals throughout the world. At the time, I remember introducing Ms.Christelle Harris (Grand Daughter of Ruth & Laurie Hussey) at one of our Board meetings as the New Director of Marketing. She was pursuing a promising career in acting and dancing and resided in Los Angeles at the time. I encouraged her to commit to the challenge and she accepted, wow, we were all so excited. Christelle is an absolutely lovable, kind and caring individual and works constantly, powered by sheer passion. I had also mentioned in an earlier post where I featured her as the reason for much of Hampden's success. Since that time Christell has attended numerous shows, conventions, tastings etc. all across the USA and Europe and there she met with many rum lovers with a passion for authentic rums as well as other distillery owners making great single rums. Subsequently, the “Guardians of Rum” movement was conceived during a visit of Luca Gargano of Velier and Richard Seale of Foursquare to Hampden Distillery where they met with Christelle Harris/Hussey Family in early 2016. You may ask, What is the Guardians of Rum?


What “The Guardians of Rum” IS about:

• Promoting artisanal over industrial scale – something already inherent in the law of the EU for whisky and Brandy.
• Distinguishing traditional methods over modern (20th century) developments – the kind of changes forbidden in EU law for many other spirits but have occurred for better or worse in rum.
• Promoting transparent age statements over sleight of hand – something already required by law in the EU/USA but not enforced in rum.
• Promoting pure rum over doctored rum (added wine, flavourings etc) – something already required by EU law but poorly enforced.
• Celebrating rum’s diversity – but a diversity from the sugar cane not a suite of flavours in the hands of a “master blender.”

What “The Guardians of Rum” is NOT about:

• Arguing between countries about the ‘definition of rum’ – it is normal for spirits to have different definitions, e,g. American v Scotch Whisky – what is important is the law where it is sold and recognition of a GI where applicable.
• Demanding uniformity. The greatest diversity is found in the producers who adhere to all of the above principles.

The Guardians of Rum issues an Insignia of membership which is not given, rather, it has to be earned.

We are therefore very pleased to see this collaboration among some of the world’s foremost distillers, distributors and rum lovers to authenticate the manufacture of true and pure rums ensuring quality and heightening of that true taste experience.

Andrew Hussey and Outram Hussey receiving

their “Guardians of Rum” Insignia from Christelle Harris.

By:  Outram J. Hussey

Hampden Community Outreach

Hampden has a long history of providing employment and of supporting the various communities in Trelawny. I had mentioned in an earlier blog post that Hampden donated lands for the building of the Hampden Primary and Infant School as well as the Muschett High School (founded in 1969) in Wakefield, Trelawny.   As you may also recall in earlier posts,  both Hampden and Long Pond Sugar Estate are owned and operated by Everglades Farms Ltd.  which is also involved in a number of community outreach programs in Clarks Town and surrounding districts.
 
This commitment continues and recently we were asked to assist in the expansion of the Muschett High School  (MHC) parking lot. Mr. Allan Milbourn of Everglades Farms spearheaded this effort and we are pleased that  it was completed and is now in operation. We would like to thank Mr. Leighton Johnson Principal (MHC) for his letter of gratitude.


We are also pleased to highlight Hampden Primary and Infant School recent accomplishments

Hampden Retain Library Quiz Title

Like they did last, Hampden Primary and Infant School emerged as a shining example of excellence in the 2015 Trelawny Caribbean Library Quiz Competition when they once again copped the coveted title.

Led by captain Brianna Foster, the Hampden team, which also featured Jade Henry, Patrice Brown, Shamoya Black, and Delon Smith, proved too strong for the other competing schools in the annual competition, comfortably duplicating their 2014 effort.

"It has been great! It is unexplainable! Every moment I have spent with this team has been just wonderful!" said 12-year-old Foster in relating her experience in this year's competition. "At first, I felt nervous because I knew everyone was depending on me to do my best. When we won, I felt elated! I was just so happy."

Go Hampden!

Rum Fire Velvet Wins GOLD - 6th. German Rum Festival

RUM FIRE VELVET
WINS GOLD AGAIN
2016

Hampden Estate was proud to bring a taste of authentic Jamaica yet again to the 6th German Rum Festival!

The high ester Hampden rums, derived solely from copper pot stills, are legendary in the cane spirits community and have a very distinct flavor profile. Of all rum distilleries in Jamaica, the process of rum production at Hampden is the most unchanged from how it looked and operated hundreds of years ago and produces the highest ester rum of any Jamaican distillery, the direct result of its terroir, fermentation and careful batch distillation process.

Many rum connoisseurs stopped by the booth to sample Rum Fire Velvet & Hampden Gold, or to sip a Rum Fire Velvet Daiquiri while talking to Marketing Director from Jamaica, Christelle Harris about Hampden’s legacy, unmistakable terroir and plans for the future.

 

 
Rum Fire Velvet and Hampden Gold rums are pure single rums that are funky, vegetal and unmistakably Jamaican. Both rums are imported and distributed by Haromex in Germany.
 
We thank the jurors of the German Rum Awards and their always impeccable great taste.

The International Jury of the GERMAN RUM AWARDS can be found by clicking on the following link.


http://rumfest-berlin.com/6-german-rum-awards/?lang=en

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.'