Appleton Estate unveils £59,320 51YO rum
Jamaican producer Appleton Estate has released The Source 51-Year-Old: its oldest expression to date and the world’s longest tropically aged rum.
At 51 years old, the release is said to be the rarest and longest tropically aged rum to date.
Its journey began in a single American oak cask on 30 July 1973.
It was first overseen by the Jamaican distillery’s master blender at the time, Owen Tulloch, and then later by his protégé and successor, Dr Joy Spence, who was the first female master blender in the spirits industry.
Spence, who drew from the cask in January 2025, said: “Tasting this beautiful expression with Owen over 40 years ago sparked my lifelong passion for the possibilities of aged rum.
“This release is a tribute to the artistry, dedication and spirit of our people; from the hand-harvested cane and traditional distillation to the stewardship of our barrels across generations. Jamaica and rum are inseparable, much like the heart and soul captured in The Source.”
Appleton Estate’s oldest rum
The rum was produced using Appleton Estate’s own sugarcane, which was openly fermented and distilled exclusively in the brand’s traditional copper pot stills.
In contrast to other brown spirits such as whisky and Cognac, which are typically aged in cooler climates, The Source’s tropical maturation has sped up the interaction between the liquid and wood at roughly three times as fast. This is said to yield an ‘exceptional’ intensity of flavour and a deep, natural colour.
Ageing in tropical conditions also requires great skill and rigorous cask management due to the higher rate of evaporation (also known as devils share). All in all, after the rum’s four-decade ageing process, the result is a spirit of profound character, complexity and rarity.
For tasting notes, drinkers may identify honeyed-raisins infused with cinnamon, maple and layers of smoky orange and vanilla on the nose. The palate then opens with citrus, spicy raisins and ripe figs, followed by rich oak and dark chocolate. The finish is described as ‘oaky and spicy’ with hints of ginger.
Just 25 navy decanters are available, designed in the shape of a heart in homage of the brand’s 275-year legacy, and crowned with a handcrafted copper rendition of Jamaica’s national bird, the doctor bird.
The decanters come in a turquoise case adorned with a straw marquetry pattern, inspired by pressed cane.
It is priced at RRP £59,320 (US$79,468), depending on retailer. In the UK, where there will be available, it can be exclusively found at Berry Bros & Rudd from September.
Rob Whitehead, spirits buyer at Berry Bros & Rudd, added: “Very few people have been making spirits longer than our friends at Appleton Estate, and even fewer have made them with the unwavering skill and dedication of Dr Joy Spence. To share in the delicious fruits of her labours, and those of her team, over many decades, is our profound honour.”
Super-premium spirit
Yesterday (15 July), Spence marked the launch in an unveiling of the rum at Berry Bro’s shop in Westminster, London.
Spence said to guests, which included The Spirits Business, that the rum was a special moment for not only Appleton Estate, but also Jamaica.
Expanding on its significance, she said: “This rum has elevated Jamaican rum into the super-premium spirits category – not the rum category, the super-premium spirits category.
“It is a homage to not just our providence, but the spirit, passion, craft, craftsmanship, stewardship and excellence of all our people at Appleton Estate.
“It has been a long time in the making, but here we are today. It also pays homage to our beautiful water source, where we have a clear blue spring that flows through the river bed, filtering through limestone and is at the heart of every drop of our Appleton Estate rum.
“One love for Appleton Estate and Jamaica – we have done it.”
Touching on the scarcity of the rum, Spence continued: “We were only able to bottle 25 bottles for the entire world, which shows how rare this rum is because we have an evaporation loss of an average of 6% per annum.
“We do control this rum and we fill it every three years, but still, you’re going to have high losses after 51 years. Ageing the rum in Scotland, to get the same complexity, you would have to spend 153 years there to get the same flavour profile.”
Appleton Estate is owned by the Campari Group.
In the Italian firm’s 2024 full-year sales, it’s Jamaican rum portfolio (which includes Appleton Estate and Wray & Nephew) fell by 5% due to supply issues caused by Hurricane Beryl, which hit the island nation last July.
Appleton Estate has been operating for 275 years, making it one of the oldest rum distilleries in the world.
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