Hampden - Vintage 2023 - C<>H - Ex-Peated Whiskey - Single Cask #775 - Foundations - 64.1%
Hampden Estate is one of the oldest sugar plantations in Jamaica . It dates back to 1753 when the estate was owned by Mr. Archibald Stirling of Scotland. In 1779, Mr. Sterling built Hampden Great House, the ground floor of which -ground floor served as a rum store until the early 1900s. The Farquarson family operated the estate producing sugar and rum until 2003, when it became the property of the Jamaica Sugar Company. The estate is reputed to have the best sugar cane lands in Jamaica, producing the most tons of sugar from milled sugar cane. At the time, Hampden rums were exported exclusively to Europe, England and the Scotland. In 2009, Everglades Farms Ltd. , owned by the Hussey family , acquired the estate through a public offering through divestment procedures of the assets of the Jamaica Sugar Company, owned by the Government of Jamaica. Since the acquisition, Everglades Farms has invested heavily in the rum mill, created jobs across the town of Trelawny and provided significant infrastructure to over 17 communities and schools.
The water used in the production of its rums is not supplied by underground aquifers, but via its own mountain water collection system , and after use, only returns clean water to the earth. Prolonged fermentation occurs with natural yeasts . Hampden Estate is one of the last distilleries that still uses batch distillation to produce its rums; it currently has four stills in operation. The oldest is a John Dore, which was installed in 1960 and can hold 7,560 litres. The rums are tropically aged ; both rums are aged for over 7 years in the tropical Jamaican climate, which is equivalent to 25 years of aging in Europe. Hampden rums are produced, aged and packaged bottled without any additives , without added sugar, tannins, caramel or glycerin.
Hampden C<>H (C Diamond H) was distilled in 2023 and aged in a single cask (#775) that had contained peated whisky for 1 year in a tropical climate at the Hampden Distillery in Jamaica. 285 bottles were produced.