Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2002

"On the nose a great combination of fruits (cherry, apples, mango), citrus and sweet notes (caramel, vanilla). Quite dry on the palate with red fruits (cherries again) and spicy wood notes. Little esters, but a pronounced spiciness and creaminess. Great Jamaican rum with little funk but power."

"Round profile with sweet notes of vanilla sugar and caramel on the one hand and a fresh potpourri of tropical-citrus fruits as well as red berries, mango and apples on the other. The cask also makes its presence felt with mild woody aromas on the nose and a subtle bitterness on the palate. The Hearts with the most present fruity note. Very nice."

"Heute Zwei Appleton im Glas: Rum Shark: Die Nase ist alkoholisch scharf und sticht unangenehm. Am Gaumen geht es genauso weiter. Leider viel zu alkoholisch. Etwas Frucht und Blumigkeit. Das ist gar nicht mal so gut. Hearts 2002: Das ist schon ein ganz anderes Kaliber. Schokoladig, holzig und mit dunklen Früchten garniert. Toller Rum, der in der Flasche noch besser geworden ist."

"Exciting... you can clearly see the somewhat younger age.... not quite so round less barrel influence ... Floral notes, somehow solvent and glue. Somewhat bitter and rough, at least pure. I will test it in May Tai."

"Edit: It would be a dream to be able to try the whole Appleton Hearts range. My conclusion would be that this is a really high-quality range. All in all, they are all great bottlings. I personally find it difficult to choose a true winner here. Only the 84 falls a little short. Both it and the 02 can't quite keep up, although that's complaining at a high level. However, if I had to choose one, it would probably be the 03 because it was the first one I tasted from the series. Yes, what can you say for 125€ at LMDW - a nobrainer! A super grenade for the price. A comparison with the other Hearts is still pending, but for the time being a more than good 8. I unknowingly gave it more than an hour in a jar with a lid. Just super tasty how it developed."

"Nice combination of dark notes, spices and a yellow fruit basket. A little rough on the edges."

"Rum Friendly Club Advent Calendar, day 20. A nose of esters and tropical fruit with varnish, young wood and a slightly unpleasant acetone edge. The palate is soft on entry, then the fruit and ester aromas gain strength, supported by the wood. The wood becomes bitter on the finish. The finish is rather long and surprisingly fruity at the very end. A very fine rum!"

"Oops, somehow I thought this was my first Appleton, but it's already the fourth! It's funny that rum from this distillery always seems new to me, I felt the same way when I tasted RX11399. I probably didn't really notice Appleton before, but that has now changed with this specific 2002 vintage. This rum is simply a jewel, it tastes incredibly smooth and round and like Caribbean sunshine and even better than the already very good 2003 (RX11399) - this will be my new vacation rum!"

"Appleton Hearts Crosstasting with the vintages 2002, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999 (RX15475, RX15474, TBD) 2002: Fruity and spicy with a hint of menthol. Lots of wood and spices on the palate, slightly astringent and bitter, very subtle fruity notes. 1993: Significantly more intense with more spices and more from the cask, plus dirty notes that remind me of TDL or Chairmans. Extremely dry and bitter on the palate with a good barrel impact, slightly charred. I miss something fruity here. The finish is very long! 1994: Similar to 1993, but more fruit and a clear minty note. Clear parallels on the palate too, but not quite as bitter and dirty and fruit notes are still discreetly present. 1999: Lots of wood and spices, with dried fruit and tropical fruit in the background. Fruits in the background. Lots of spices and wood on the palate, but hardly any fruit notes, but no charred/bitter notes either. 1995: Again, dirty aromas with tar, leather and varnish. Similar to 1993/1994, the woody, bitter aromas also dominate the palate here. For me: 1994 ->8.8 2002 + 1999 ->8.7 1993 + 1995 ->8.6"

"Warm vanilla wood nose. Some spice and bitterness on the palate, but still within limits. Full pot still power, minimal mint at the back. The alcohol could be a touch better integrated. Unfortunately quite expensive, but a good rum."

"Of all the Appleton velier releases this one for me is the least convincing!The nose is intriguing while when you taste it it all fades a little too soon!It leaves you with lots of citrus, some spice and a fair amount of cask influence!A few notes of caramel, roasted pineapple and red fruits remain only on the side and a greater presence of them would have helped!Overall a good rum with a few flaws!"

"Is similar to the 2003 already just not my profile. Way too much wood, hardly any fruit, a bit spicy and earthy, a lot of tannins and also the alcohol could be integrated a bit better. Has for me no nice drinking flow. Unfortunately not my case."

"I would have expected much more from both the name and the retail price. So much alcohol that it makes everything elusive. Still a good rum, but personally I would never spend 300 euros on it, maybe barely 60 euros. Let me say that the world of rums, but not only, often presents rums with excessive costs but poor quality. Just look at Samaroli or Velier who now too frequently, exploiting their name, offer bottles for sale at prices at least double their real value. As is often the case, where business is successful, prices go up relegating certain tastings to a small group of people. This creates an inflation that could in the future put a strain on the rum world and close its doors to the masses who will look elsewhere."

"#4024 This one has a bit more power in the profile and I can actually get the coffee on the nose. Again nice and fruity with nice roasted wood and some added caramel and spices. This one also draws really nice curtains in the glass and the empty glass has a nice caramel touch. Price to quality is pretty OK though these releases are getting hyped and picked up by people to be auctioned off."

"Not a bad rum by any means but doesn't stand out massively to me. Quite a nice nose, on the palate it is quite powerful and maybe even slightly rough? I'm getting lots of fruits, some caramel, vanilla and maybe coffee? A shortish finish. I am getting a bit of barrel influence as well. A good rum to try!"