Hampden S.B.S Jamaica <>H 2013

Beautiful 2013 <>H that requires concentration and a lot of time to breathe. Compared to the other 2013/2014s, much more pleasant mouthfeel and noticeably more tropical fruit. Great value for money.

This one was a retaste and I stick to my original score. A very nice Jamaican. Another pretty good Jamaica and again the ABV has bee integrated really well. Intense and funky with fruits and lightly dry on the palate and finish. I like the roasted wood in the profile. It draws very nice curtains in the glass.

For me, not quite the level of the Nobilis 2013, but very awesome release. The tropical portion of the maturation is clearly noticeable. On a par with the Warehouse #1 bottling.

On the nose, I like it well. The high ABV stings against expect hardly. And besides the fermented fruit, gluten / varnish notes obligatory in <> H, here also cream, cake batter, baked apple, candied. Pineapple, toasty and salty on the palate. The finish is not super long, but neatly tightens the cheeks (astringent).

So now another <>H today. The one with the most revolutions in the glass. I can taste this bourbon influence, which makes it stand out a little from the others tasted today. But can't quite keep up with its <>H competitors from the various vintages today. Solid, but doesn't come close to the other bottlings.

All the funk. Fermented pineapple go! Tropical fruits. Musty. Strong. Heavy. Dry. Pretty classic high ester Hampden. Not sure if I can ever get used to the 68%...I always plan it at the end of the night.

Tasted together with Colours of Rum Jamaica 2013 RX17342 The nose is very similar and a touch fruitier. On the palate, the alcohol does not seem as well integrated as in the CoR. The two differ on the palate: While the CoR remains sweet for quite a long time before it veers towards salty and olive, the S.B.S does this more quickly and therefore seems more bitter to me. Otherwise, the two are very similar. It's really difficult to detect differences in the aftertaste of these rums! I wouldn't be able to tell them apart blindly in this respect. All in all, I like the CoR two hairs breadths better because of its more pronounced sweetness and better integrated alcohol.

A classic <>H Hampden profile with not quite perfectly integrated alcohol!But lots of esters and baked pineapple 😊Yummy

Yes, the catch of the day I would say :) Nobody can be against Hampden, they're all great. As usual, a nice fruity note and you can taste the ester well, but hardly any alcohol. Delicious, more of it :)

Un Hampden assez jeune et tout en puissance, qui démarre sur un très gros nez funky, plein d’esters, de colle, de vernis et de solvants. Il y a un beau fruité avec une touche d’olive, de beurre et de crème, de caramel et de notes pâtissières (massepain). Un léger soupçon d’épices et d’influence du fût se font ressentir, sans être dérangeants. L’alcool est imperceptible au nez. L’attaque est une véritable frappe aromatique en bouche, très intense et puissante, avec de lourdes notes phénoliques et médicinales, fruitées et acidulées sur l’agrume. Le boisé tannique et les épices rajoutent du cachet avec l’olive et le caramel. À boire toutefois avec parcimonie, car les 68,3% sont là malgré tout et pourraient être mieux intégrés. La finale est longue, collante et tannique, épicée, chaude et lourde, à la fois salée, un peu rôtie, fruitée, médicinale et boisée. Il y a une pointe d’amertume qui ressort dans le tas. Un profil puissant, vif et expressif, un poil trop agressif et qui le discrédite par rapport à l’embouteillage de Nobilis, mais qui reste un très beau Hampden.

Typical Hampden nose. Esters, pineapple, varnish. It makes you want to go further. In the mouth, it explodes. The almost 70° are not too present. Fruit galore. Esters. A little iodized side. Too bad, the finish is rather short with a certain bitterness and astringency.

The alcohol is not very well integrated, it's a shame. Otherwise we have a very original Hampden with a rather sweet coffee-chocolate note counterbalanced by the punch of a high degree Hampden. Nice potential but not perfectly exploited.

A very good, typical hampden that is more on the bitter, astringent side.

Sweet, Ester, Fruit, good Alcohol Integration, very full. Suffice to say, Hampden is one of my favorite favorites.

Nobilis N14 vs. SBS. Crown goes to the Nobilis. While both are extremely nice, the SBS feels more heavy, roasted and closed up. The Nobilis almost feels elegant with a very nice balance between esters and notes from the cask. Both are beasts however and I‘m surprised how much I like them actually. Nice cask selection from both bottlers.