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Velier Hampden Cees Van Wees 1959
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Buttery tropical fruit, pineapple and banana with mature esters sit on top of old-cask wood and a whiff of espresso. This is a 1959 Hampden that spent most of its life continental then decades in glass, so it reads gentler than a young ester bomb. At nearly 72% the alcohol is present but mostly well tucked in. A piece of history several tasters found fascinating more than mind-blowing.
The community says- Buttery tropical fruit
- Well-integrated alcohol
- But: Very high ABV
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How does Velier Hampden Cees Van Wees 1959 taste?
Summarized by AI from community reviews.
Old, high-proof Hampden more history than fireworks Loved as a historical, "still vivid" old Hampden with buttery fruit and good alcohol integration. Several found the palate one-dimensional and the finish unspectacular for the hype.
Aroma profileSerious Hampden fans chasing vintage bottlings and history
Anyone who dislikes very high ABV or expects a big ester bomb
Style & occasion: Tropical & funkySipping neat
Full aroma profile Aroma families · nose & palate · top aromas
Relative to this rum's strongest aroma family
10 of 21 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
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What does the community say?
21 community reviews
14 selected write-ups on this page, all of them in the RumX app
Top 20% of Jamaica rums
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Positive from 8.0 · Mixed 6.0–7.9 · Critical below 6.0
Review by Skyfly
A historic drop that is truly enjoyable in the glass. Despite the long storage time, the wood and spice aromas are subtle. This makes the tropical fruits on the palate all the more powerful — I have rarely experienced such intense and buttery fruits in a glass. The finish seems to last forever. The alcohol couldn't be better integrated!
Review by LukaŽiga
Most helpful positive review
9:On the nose, esters, funky, medicinal, overripe tropical fruits like banana and pineapple, candied fruits, vegetal, herbaceous molasses, woody with cookie dough, pastry, spicy allspice, slightly pungent, buttery, round, bump into our nosetrils. On aeration, citrus fruits arise, fermented, molasses, fresh with tea, sweet with honeycomb, burnt sugar, some rubber. 8,5:On the palate, the attack is slightly alcoholic, medicinal with esters, funky, fruity with tropical fruits like pineapple and banana, citrus, red fruits, some candied, syrupy, concentrated, oily, buttery with spicy, smoky wood with nuts, cookie dough, espresso, chocolate, as molasses is vegetal with briny olive, sweet with honey. 8,4:The finish is medium long, dry and tannic, winterly with roasted oak notes like pastry, burnt sugar, cookie dough, coffee, spicy allspice, fruity with tropical and citrus fruits, slightly acidic, molasses is vegetal with, earthy, herbaceous, sweet, syrupy with honey..
Review by Leo Krüper
Most helpful mixed review
Too much alcohol and old
Review by DomM
Nose starts off rather closed up. Alcohol, wood and pine cones / the sensation of a forrest. Let‘s give it some more time to breath. While forrest notes are deminishing over time some continental fruits show up over time. Still the nose is not very expressive overall. Very oily and thick texture in the palate. Much more intensity versus on the nose. Also the high ABV is better integrated versus on the nose. Wood, butter, cookie dough, tropical fruits with a twist of espresso and dark chocolate on the finish. This is quite nice. Very interesting bottle to taste yet just very good but not outstanding.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
#6771 09.05.2026 A small online tasting with my friend while talking about which Rum Events to participate in 2027. This is of course a piece of history which can be seen at the price tag. A nice balanced and fruity rum with medium ester, light leacher and some medicinal notes.
Review by mto75
A truly venerable Hampden from the dissolved van Ween stock. Spent 1988 - 2024 in the Demijohn, which can probably be considered neutral preservation. On the nose, it leans towards fermented fruits and sour cream/milk cream, old barrel (and a bit like beet or potato cellar), no ester bomb. On the palate, barrel, roasted, espresso, and clearly, with almost 72% ABV, there is also a noticeable alcoholic sharpness. The finish is quite long (thanks to the high ABV), but rather one-dimensional. The rating is tough here, I've had clearly better HDs in the glass, but with the history, this is of course an absolutely exceptional rum.
Review by Jakob
Whisky Live Paris tasting. Impressions and evaluation are based on direct impressions from the tasting glass. A beautiful Hampden with a powerful structure thanks to its high alcohol content. No flavor revolution in the glass, but great quality.
Review by Serge
Nice old Hampden. Light fruits, buttery notes, matured esters, and still a lot of power. Even though it says 1959, it was only in the cask for 29 years and only 3 of those years were tropical. So not quite as over-the-top as you might think at first glance. Still very good.
Review by Johannes
It's not so easy to assess the mark after such a long storage period! I would rather estimate Run low Ester Mark as hlcf. Something is simply lost due to the long storage period... The alcohol is quite well integrated. I now have the rum in my glass again and have added a few drops of water. Unfortunately, this causes it to lose a lot. There is a lot of wood left, a slight bitterness, little yellow fruit, an amazing sharpness, and little ester. Overall, I am a little disappointed after the experiment with water...
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
28-year-old Hampden from 1959, primarily matured on the mainland and then further matured in demijohns. It has everything that makes a Hampden special, especially on the nose, but without being particularly harsh or conspicuous. In my opinion, the alcohol is a little too prominent on the palate, which is no surprise at just under 72%. I don't think there's much difference between this and a good 92/93 Hampden today, which costs only a fraction of the price and has a longer finish. I can't quite understand the hype surrounding it, as there's nothing particularly striking about it and the quality isn't outstanding either. The bottom line is that it's a good vintage Hampden, but nothing more, and therefore not worth $2,000 in my opinion...
Review by Righrum
Whisky Live Paris 2025 - to be tasted again to confirm the score and notes. If it will ever br possible. The tasting was initially blind, driving me to recognize an old jamaican, but far from actual Hampden. The best of this rum is the fact that is still vivid after so many years. Fresh and vibrant, tropicale fruits (ananas, some banana) and esters are still there.
Review by Filip Šikula
The onset reminds me of a pleasant but fairly typical Hampden representative, however, after the first few seconds in the mouth, it takes a completely different and very interesting direction. The very faint woodiness is interesting given the age, but it’s important to realize that a large part of the resting took place in a glass demijohn. What’s really interesting, though, is the incredible integration of the alcohol. I’d easily guess around 50%.
Review by Buddudharma
The key data is obviously amazing. On the nose, there’s really a nice Hampden essence, but unfortunately the palate can’t quite keep up. The alcohol is pretty well integrated, but overall I’m still not a fan of rums with such an extremely high ABV. The profile is a bit too herbal for me overall, and the finish is rather unspectacular. An interesting experience, but by far not worth the price.
Review by Martin Švojgr
I don't know the exact history of this rum, maybe just that the aging in the teopes was only a few years. It's not an ester bomb, but you can definitely sense the characteristic Hampden notes. Because of the age, I expected the taste to be smoother. An interesting experience.
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Community shelf
3 bottles logged by 3 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
0% opened, 0 emptied.
What does Velier Hampden Cees Van Wees 1959 cost?
Avg. community purchase price 1497 €.
What members paid for this bottle, self-reported. Not a market value — the purchases are over three years old at the median and unverified.
Current best price: 1453.36 €.
3 purchased · 21 tasted · 7 wishlist · as of
Details about Velier Hampden Cees Van Wees 1959
A Pot Still Rum from Jamaica, bottled by Velier, at 71,9%.
Read on in the RumX Guide
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