The rum world has changed in recent years. Rum is no longer a cocktail mixer but a drink with the status of fine whisky and cognac, in particular Jamaican rum. Two of the most famous distilleries the Long Pond and Hampden Estate are in the core of this revival. Their trademark is strong, funky tastes and the pot-still production processes and they are bringing the world back to the reality about what Jamaican rum really is.
To collectors, connoisseurs and sipping enthusiasts, a bottle, such as the Long Pond 18 Year Old 2005 Cambridge STCE 70cl or the Hampden Estate 12 Year Old 2010 HLCF Rare Cask is not a drink but a treasure. These rums are strong, multidimensional and full of character. And above all, they are crafted in the old-fashioned fashion: long fermentation, wild yeasts, and a high regard to tradition.
Hampden Estate: In Depth
Hampden Estate is the oldest rum distillery in Jamaica; the history of its existence is more than 265 years. It also makes high-ester rums i.e. rums with very strong scents and tropical wild tastes. Not these are sweet, gentle spirits. They are loud, eccentric and livelier.
Among the notable ones, there is the Hampden Estate 3 Year Old 2020. It is young yet is full of notes of banana, pineapple and spice. It is lively, funky and ideal to be taken as a cocktail or straight. The bottle is a wonderful introduction to the style of the brand.
In aged complexity, in the Hampden Estate 12 Year Old 2010 HLCF, there is an even deeper taste of oak, molasses and roasted fruit. It is dry, full-bodied and really memorable. Then there is the Hampden Estate 12 Year Old 2010 HLCF Rare Cask edition, which is even richer, due to its limited supply of specially selected bottles.
The Hampden Estate 12 Year Old 2010 HGML Rare Cask and the even funkier Hampden Estate 12 Year Old 2010 DOK Rare Cask will also appeal to those who have a penchant to rare cask. These are the upper ester notes of the Hampden range each with a distinctive intensity and aroma. They are not daily drinks, but collector bottles, which are worth tasting carefully.
Something a bit more soft and still with the classic aspect is the Hampden Estate 7 Year Old 2016 OWH Habitation. It flaunts the sophistication of lower-ester Hampden rum, and is therefore less challenging to consume whilst being at the same time, extremely charismatic. The same can be said of the Hampden Estate 5 Year Old 2019 LROK Habitation that presents a pleasant mix of age and funky strong. When you want something old and rare, the Hampden Estate 17 Year Old 2000 Sansibar 70cl comes out as one of the best.
Long Pond Distillery
Another legend Jamaican rum distiller is Long Pond. Compared to Hampden in the past, it is less vocal today but it is causing some ripples amongst rum enthusiasts due to its audacious production and collaboration with Velier. Long pond specialises in tritical distillation of pots, and so called marks of rum, such as STCE and VRW relating to fermentation style and ester content.
Excelling is the Long Pond 18 Year Old 2005 Cambridge STCE 70cl. It is a full-ester Jamaican funk rum, so it tastes like overripe banana, glue, spice and old wood. It is matured 18 years old and strong yet refined. It is an especially long-topically aged product with a pungent taste, hence adored by collectors.
In case you want something a little younger, but still bold, there is another great bottle: the Long Pond 15 Year Old 2006 VRW Habitation Velier. It has sweet tones of vanilla, dried fruit and pepper and the funky touch that Long Pond is famous of.
These two rums will be just good examples of why Long Pond is getting global respect. Mass production or sweetening is not done. They are authentic and pure representations of conventional rum.
The Revival: What is Special About These Rums Nowadays
The difference between Hampden Estate and Long Pond is that they are not going to compromise. Where most rums are blended, flavored, or are too sugary, the two distilleries remain true to their ways. They employ the techniques of natural fermentation, pot stills and long maturation, frequently in the hot Caribbean sun. The outcome is rum that tells of place, time and craft.
They do not only taste good, but these rums are educational as well. What you are drinking when you take a Hampden Estate 12 Year Old 2010 HLCF, or a Long Pond 18 Year Old 2005 Cambridge STCE 70cl is not just alcohol. You are sampling the flavour of Jamaican rum.
Conclusion
Jamaican rum is in vogue and the key to this revival are Hampden Estate and Long Pond. Whether its funky brightness of the Hampden Estate 3 Year Old 2020 or the deep complexity of the Long Pond 18 Year Old 2005 Cambridge STCE 70cl, the rums will demonstrate that Jamaica is a home of some of the finest spirits in the world.
At Liquor Kingdom, we sell rare aged and old expressions that should be in every serious rum collection.
