When the Hampden 8 Marks Collection came out in 2022, it created a lot of buzz. After all, it was the first time that a distillery offered a cross-tasting of all its marques in a single set for regular purchase. So what is it? Marks or marques? We’ve learned, also directly from Hampden, that these are marques and not marks and I have no idea why it is called this way now… Anyway for most Rum lovers, this set is like a dream come true. I don’t want to sound arrogant at all but for me, this wasn’t as exciting as you might think, as I am already very familiar with all of these marques. But then again, I have been reminded that I am probably not your typical Rum lover. So what do I actually want to say? I happy that Hampden did what they did here and hope that more distilleries follow the track. We will taste the Rums in ascending order of their ester content. Here’s the corresponding overview.

Marque	Name	Esters in g/hlaa
OWH	Outram W. Hussey	40-80
LFCH	Lawrence Francis Close Hussey	85-120
LROK	Light Rum Owen Kelly	200-400
HLCF	Hampden Light Continental Flavoured	500-700
<>H	Hampden	900-1000
HGML	Hampden George MacFarquhar Lawson	1000-1100
C<>H	Continental Hampden	1300-1400
DOK	Dermot Owen Kelly-Lawson	1500-1600

Hampden “OWH” 2022 (60%): I am still trying to figure out what Hampden wants to do with this low ester marque as I believe that other distilleries do a much better job at creating a somewhat similar profile, but then again, the terroir and the unique conditions at Hampden probably still make it something worthwhile. Nose: Different citrus fruits, cherry and almond. Nothing extraordinary so far. Palate: The alcohol is integrated very well. Orange, tangerine and related citrus fruits shape the profile. A hint of varnish in the back, as well as an indication of the cherry. It is not bad, but my guess is that ageing really helps these lower ester marques. Finish: The prolongation of the palate. Hampden is almost never bad but as I have said, I feel a similar profile can also be done by other distilleries, perhaps even better. (70/100)

Hampden “LFCH” 2022 (60%): Together with “OWH”, this is a newish marque. Nose: Quite to my surprise, this feels a bit flatter than the “OWH”. We get more vanish and fewer fruity notes, which feels like a step in the wrong direction at this point. Palate: Somewhat nutty with a faulty note of detergent and soap, orange and something rather bitter such as foul almond or walnut. This is very weird. Like the “OWH”, I believe that this profile is produced in a much better way by a different Jamaican distillery, in this case Long Pond, to be precise. Finish: These foul nutty notes, paired with soap leave a rather uncomfortable impression. Nope, this isn’t great. (67/100)

Hampden “LROK” 2022 (60%): Some LROKs were already really good at 12 or 13 years and even unaged LROK can be very good, as we’ve seen before. Nose: Much better than the previous Rums. For the first time, we get a certain complexity and a multitude of different fruits, such as pineapple, tangerine, orange and other citrus fruits. After a while also acetone and something along the line of rambutan. Nice! Palate: The logical consequence of the nose. It comes with basically the same fruity notes but also delivers a certain dryness next to the acetone. Finish: Nothing now, but the exceeding dryness is noteworthy. This is definitely enjoyable and enters the territory of being a candidate mixing Rum. (76/100)

Hampden “HLCF” 2022 (60%): Now HLCF is where Hampden starts becoming fun and where we reach a territory (in terms of esters and funk) where Hampden excels, in my book. Nose: Already a lot of varnish and acetone, paired with pineapple and almond. It is kinda one-dimensional, however. Palate: Pleasant, but uninspiring, with a prominent note of mint drops, next to the notes from the nose. Finish: Quite long and very true to the palate. To me, it seems like HLCF still gains massively from tropical ageing, as the four and six year old expressions by the distillery have demonstrated so very well. (74/100)

Hampden “<>H” 2022 (60%): I am not sure how accurate this is, but given that this marque is just ‘Hampden’, I always feel like it is the “true” Hampden marque, i.e. Hampden as it was originally designed to be. We should ask one day if this is correct or not. Nose: Very pleasant and fruity, with ripe pineapple, mango, citrus, some acetone, banana and cocoa. Blindly, it doesn’t really lack any sort of aging if you ask me. Palate: Here it become more apparent that the Rum is unaged, although that isn’t a bad thing necessarily. Citrus, pineapple, banana and fruit schnaps are the name of the game here. This one is extremely layered and sufficiently complex already. Finish: Long and fruity, typical Hampden if you want. The first real highlight of the set if you ask me. (80/100)

Hampden “HGML” 2022 (60%): Nose: We are moving away from the fruits and focus on varnish, acetone, marzipan and pastry (think along the lines of Baklava), i.e. what this marque is known for. And I must say, it works extremely well. Nevertheless, we can still fine pineapple, ripe apple and figs. Quite cool. Palate: Already very sour and acidic, which is something you typically get with these high ester marques. It is also the first Rum, where nose and palate do not really match, i.e. the sweet and thick pastry notes from the nose are really at war with the acidic ester notes of the palate, but it is this very weird interplay that makes some of these high ester Hampdens so magical. Finish: Long with pastry, almond paste/ marzipan, pineapple and citrus. (80/100)

Hampden “C<>H” 2022 (60%): We are almost reaching the upper end of the scale. Nose: If you want, this is the combination of “<>H” and “<>HGML”, almost as if you take the best of both worlds and up the ante. Relatively speaking, this is once again more on the sour side of things, with citrus and pineapple, but all the familiar elements are still present. Deeper in the glass I believe to find something close to coffee as well. Palate: Sour and acidic. Very similar to the “<>H” in that sense, but even more extreme. Personally, I prefer the more modest “<>H”, something I’ve also found to be true with some of the aged expressions. Finish: Nail polish remover galore, paired with cherry, orange and herbs. (79/100)

Hampden “DOK” 2022 (60%): DOK, the legend. While it has already been demystified a couple of years ago by the fabulous Letter of Marque crew (…hrumph, hrumph…; hard to believe it has already been six years, guys!), it still remains something rather special. Nose: Wow! Fruits and pastry galore. We get the whole bunch of fruits including mango, pineapple citrus and banana, but also marzipan, varnish, acetone and Baklava. Behind all of that lures a salty olive brine. Fantastic, even though you can tell that it could use a little ageing. Palate: Quite sweet and not too sour, which contradicts most of our previous experiences with the marque. This feels almost balanced, which is very crazy if you ask me. I get notes of sugar cane, plums, sweet berries, pineapple, banana and many more… Finish: A long continuation of the palate. Probably my favorite Rum of the session. (82/100)

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