Hampden Kill Devil (The Whisky Barrel) 2001
Loved by Tschusikowsky, LukaŽiga & 22 more
For experienced palates, this 17‑year Hampden is a tamed high‑ester Jamaican: tropical fruits, marzipan and cookie dough, balanced by wood, smoke and light industrial notes. A dry, complex sipper praised by RumX regulars.
Aggregated from 29 community reviews.
- Balanced funk
- Tropical fruit pastry
- Dry long finish
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How does Hampden Kill Devil (The Whisky Barrel) 2001 taste?
Aggregated from 29 community reviews.
Relaxed, dry high‑ester Hampden For experienced palates, this 17‑year Hampden is a tamed high‑ester Jamaican: tropical fruits, marzipan and cookie dough, balanced by wood, smoke and light industrial notes. A dry, complex sipper praised by RumX regulars.
Fans of high‑ester Jamaican rum who want a more relaxed, wood‑influenced Hampden with tropical fruit, pastry notes and good structure at near‑cask strength.
Beginners or those sensitive to high ABV, and ester‑heads seeking maximum funky intensity or deep complexity for the asking price.
How is Hampden Kill Devil (The Whisky Barrel) 2001 rated?
RumX's 0–10 scale is strict , 8.4 lands squarely in the "Very good" band. 93% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 0% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
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Rum reviews
A selection of the most popular reviews from our community. You can view the complete list in our app.
Based on 29 ratings
Review by Tschusikowsky
Often Fiji rum reminds me of Jamaican. Here, rather the other way around. The smoky and peppery barrel notes made it remind me of a South Pacific. Relaxed Hampden. Of the tasted three 01 vintages for me the best.
Review by LukaŽiga
8,6:On the nose, esters, solvents, funky, fermented tropical fruits like banana and pineapple, sour citrus fruits with orange, smoky(bacon), roasted wood with pastry, marzipan, sweet molasses with honeycomb, bump into our nosetrils. On aeration, the barrel impact is even stronger, cream toffee, chocolate and roasted nuts arise, spiciness, salty tones, burnt rubber and flowery, musty molasses. 8,7:On the palate, the attack is slightly dry, funky with esters, rubber, bitter, quite peppery, with tropical fruits like banana and pineapple, citrus fruits, later joined with red fruits, the wood is roasted with dark chocolate, pastry, roasted nuts, burnt sugar, smoky with BBQ, salty, as barrel impact is obvious, hints of peat are inevitable, metallic patina, molasses is musty, herbaceous, vegetal. 8,7:The finish is long, dry&tannic, balanced, as smoky, burnt, charred wood notes, a bit dirty, with peat, metallic patina, pair various overripe fruits and vegetal molasses. Edit:28.4.26, an upgrade for 0,1
Review by mto75
pretty relaxed 2001 <>H. On the nose yogurt, pastry, pineapple, the fermented fruit not super dominant at all. On the palate toasty-smoky.
Review by Chrischi78
You have to give it a little time to breathe. If it is regularly musty at the beginning, it releases wonderful aromas after the time it takes to light up and smoke the first third of the cigar. Very round for a Hampden and without the emphasis on ester notes. Smoooooth!
Review by DomM
Least funky and well rounded nose. Brings cookie dough and marzipan to the table. For me somewhat the surprise winner out of my small cross tasting. Definitively the least funky. But on the other hand nicely combining fruity notes with cookies and honey creating the most balanced and enjoyable out of the bunch. If you are more into high esters, this is not the best for you. But then why would you go for <>H anyway..? 😉 So far I liked all out of the 2001 <>H batch. Looking at a close field: KD > TB > RC-M > RC
Review by Skyfly
Pleasant Hampden in which the esters are more in the background. Instead, tropical fruits, especially pineapple, are in the foreground. Notes of sweet pastries can be detected on the nose and palate, resulting in a really successful combination. The finish is rather woody, slightly smoky and nutty. Alcohol perfectly integrated.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
07.02.2020 Private tasting i was invited to. Notes. Light in colour. Nose: Intense, wood, varnish, vegetal, herbs, fruity, banana. Palate: Warm, wood, roasted, pineapple, orange, ginger, vegetal, light nutts. Finish: Long and warm, wood, fruity, light chocolate.
Review by Rodolphe
I really liked the nose marked by something like candied orange and traditional marzipan. It was very sweet, not the fruity slap either. I didn't like the mouth as much. I have a hard time describing it. It's simpler, fruity and pastry but it lacks a little complexity and flavors I think. It's still a good rum, but we know much better ones from hampden.
Review by lukasdrinkinghabits
First typical High Ester Hampden nose: roasted pineapple, almond croissant and rather chemical ester (solvent).In the mouth comes to first the sweetness of tropical fruits, then come spicy and floral notes - it reminds me of pepper and curry leaves.Despite the 17 years, the barrel remains very much in the background compared to the 10 year old of TWB this is nevertheless clearly rounder, but also less exciting - is also the significantly weaker mark. This slight brake makes it somehow unbalanced for me.
Review by Buddudharma
Solid Hampden, very smooth, but without that very special touch....
Review by bur2000
Beim Riechen am Glas kommt Ananas und süße weiche Plätzchen, noch fast roher Teig. Dahinter aber auch ein frischer Eindruck, der mich an Zahnarzt denken lässt. Nelke und Menthol? Oder Zitrusfrüchte? Lösemittel oder Überreife fehlt fast gänzlich. Der Alkohol hält sich angenehmerweise auch sehr bedeckt. Insgesamt eine schöne, leichte Mischung. Je länger er steht, desto mehr merkt man eine holzige Note. Im Mund ein deutliches Prickeln, wie von Kohlensäure. Der Rum ist nicht weich am Gaumen. Der Geschmack ist fruchtig, Mango, Bananen und etwas Überreife. Der Abgang birgt dann eine heftige Überraschung. Man fühlt sich als stünde man neben einem wummernden alten Schiffsmotor, während man einen tropischen Fruchtsalat verspeist hat. Das heißt, Öl, Teer, heißes Metall und reife Früchte.. Man spürt gewissermaßen, wie der Eindruck im Hirn zwischen Schwerindustrie und tropischer Frucht hin und her springt. Interessant, aber vielleicht nicht Jedermanns Sache. Mit der Zeit verschwinden die teerigen Aromen und der Fruchtsalat hinterlässt einen dezenten Eindruck auf den Lippen, gemischt mit überraschend auftretendem Honig. #17:250116
Review by Filip Šikula
At the beginning, a classic, and very pleasant estery finky fruity scent, which I like on hampdens. On the palate, I get sweet biscuit flavours, pepper and spice alongside the usual fruity notes. The finish is medium-long.
Review by Chris L
Not an exceptional but a very relaxed Hampden, I like it!
Review by Jackie Flannery
C: W wine Kill Devil is Hunter Laing´s rum line, otherwise a renowned independent whisky bottler. The black bottle and the dancing devil should be familiar to every rum geek who seek single casks/cask strength. A couple of years ago HL selected exclusively a few Hampdens for The Whisky Barrel and this was one of them. It was a time when Hampden wasn’t what Hampden is today. S: 2001 means the mark and 900-1000 g/hlaa esters. Intense nose despite 17 years in the barrel, it reminds me of the 2007 vintage, my favourite. Pineapple, lime and in less magnitude, acetone M: Here is where I think the barrel might’ve influenced the rum badly. It´s the kind of sourness you find in a spoiled lemon. Bitter. It lacks the sweetness of the 2007 vintages F: Finish follows, unfortunately, the palate
Review by Pavel Spacek
... Hampden, the legendary Jamaican distillery that produces rum as well as alcohol for perfume. In all the rums from this distillery you will taste wild esters, after which your whole organism will soak up the smell of golden tropical fruits - mango, papaya, pineapple, peach. One of the "must try before you die" rums
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Expert reviews
Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by The Auditor Reviews
"Hampden is my favorite distillery and we see no surprise here this is another great example of why. Great flavors, that classic pineapple, a bit of glue. Just a real funky rum that has been tamped a bit by the oak."Read full review →
Expert review by The Fat Rum Pirate
"A little water does help give the finish a bit more clarity. Your palate isn't hit quite as hard with the initial burst of flavour on the sip. There is a lot of choice when it comes to Hampden rum at the moment (even on The Whisky Barrel's own site)...."Read full review →
Community purchases
15 bottles logged by 14 collectors.
A drinker's rum.
40% opened, 2 emptied and repurchased.
15 purchased · 30 tasted · 8 wishlist · as of
About the Hampden distillery
The Hampden distillery is located in Jamaica. Rums from Hampden have been reviewed 19,383 times with an average of 8.4/10.
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