Rum Artesanal Hampden 33 Year 1990 C<>H

Review #1185; Rum Review #500

Here we have a bottling of rum from European independent bottler Rum Artesanal.  This is a single cask of rum from Hampden Estate, that famous Jamaican distillery located in Trelawny Parish. This molasses rum was distilled on a pot still in 1990, put into an ex-bourbon cask, and aged in Europe for 33 years until it was bottled in 2023 at cask strength with no additives. This rum is of the C<>H marque which clocks in at 1300-1400 esters gr/hLAA.

I also feel it is appropriate to think back a bit on rum in general. 500 rums is quite a lot to try, when I started reviewing spirits in 2018, and decided to focus more on rum in early 2021 I did not think it would lead to here. Now, Rum is by far my favorite spirit to drink and write about. Writing reviews like this for spirits can at times lead to burnout, but with rum that is not something that has happened yet. The history of rum in each country is interesting; each distillery has its own story and flavor to explore as well. Even amongst the well known’s like this Hampden here, there is a lot to try. However, even when bored of the giants there is always new and interesting places where rum is being distilled such as Oaxaca cane juice rum from Mexico or rums from Louisiana in the USA or Fiji.

Looking back, I wrote my first rum review, or even tried my first rums, in early 2019. It was a Distiller’s Drawer from Privateer that opened my eyes to how great rum could be. A pretty tame first entry but from there I was thrown in the deep end with Hampden’s and Monymusks, with a particular r/rum bottling of DOK that really got me into being the ester fiend I am today. All of that to say, the biggest change in rum I’ve seen since I started was availability.  Here in the US, with the rise of new American independent bottlers, the ability to get interesting rums is far easier than ever. With those new bottlers, and brands bringing more fun stuff to our shores, rum in American has a bright future I feel, and I hope I can write similar things whenever I get to pen a brief reflection for rum review 1000, whenever that may be.

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Distillery: Hampden Estate

Bottler: Rum Artesanal

Region: Jamaica

Cask: Ex-Bourbon

ABV: 57.4%

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Nose: Pungent, fills the room. Grilled over-ripe Pineapple, cement glue, Lemon Zest, Black Pepper, Gunpowder, Lime Juice, Coriander, chai, vanilla

Palate:   Thick oily mouthfeel, Grilled pineapple, Lemon Zest, mango, cement glue, orange peel, black pepper, lime juice, coriander, allspice, chai, vanilla

Finish:  Long Finish, Black Pepper, Grilled Pineapple, Lime Juice, Mango, Orange Peel, Coriander, Allspice, touch of barrel char, chai, vanilla

Rating: 10/10

Hampden is my favorite distillery and this is an exceptionally old single cask. It shows how vibrant these high ester rums can be even after being in oak for over 30 years. This is an acidic forward offering in a good way, lime juice, pineapple, a bunch of baking spices thrown over top of it all as well. This is an incredible cask and these very old high ester Hampden’s just offer such an incredible array of flavors within a single glass that so far has been impossible to match in terms of quality for me.