Velier Hampden Trelawny Endemic Birds (Ring Tailed Pigeon) LFCH 2011

Comes fresh on the nose, slightly vinegar, with solvent and citrus. Caramelized orange with vanilla and honey, dark cherry, something in the direction of dried apricot. Woody-smoky, oak, a bit buttery and creamy. Pleasant and round. The alcohol is super integrated. Nice spicy-fruity palate. Starts a bit bitter-salty, then some marzipan sweetness followed by a hint of apricot before the anise flavor spreads. I think I can also find thyme lightly. It seems almost roasty-malty in between. A collector's rum, but actually good!

#4720 09.05.2024 Relaxing at home with a few of my Endemic Birds Samples. Nose Fresh, light wood, fruity, pineapple, ester, light citrus, light vegetal. Palate Oily, fresh, light wood, faint smoke, fruity, berries, banana, ester, faint chocolate. Finish Medium to long, light spicy, wood, light roasted, fruits, berries, light chocolate. The empty glass has stronger chocolate notes as well a a glue note and some licorice.

Apart from the price, I find this bottling quite successful. A pleasant and balanced blend of fruit. There is spice and woodiness with a little funkiness. The alcohol is well integrated and carries the aromas quite well. The finish could last a little longer

Certainly overpriced with the bird on the label, but I still find this LFCH delicious. Very dense and sweet dark nose with lots of fruit such as oranges, cherries and green bananas. The palate is more almond with vanilla and wood with banana and glue.

Pleasant nose, but it’s instantly clear this is low on esters. The rum smells sweet, dark and malted, with near no medicinal notes. The fruits consist primarily of fresh coconut, accompanied by a little yellow banana and blackberry notes. Apricot jam, caramel, vanilla and oak provide even more sweetness. Some necessary balancing comes from a sprinkle of sharp vinegar. Quite different on the palate; much wilder than the nose suggested. Strong flavours of banana, green and yellow, followed by pineapple juice and more apricot jam. The sugar is less burnt and leans more towards marzipan or frosting. It’s sweet with vanilla, yet slightly bitter with malt. There’s subtle medicinal notes like hardened glue and last week’s solvents. Ends peppery and really prickles the tongue for a short minute with some spicy chili. The finish is medium in length and returns to long waves of coconut, caramel and cream.

Nice low ester Hampden. The nose is very fruity, while the taste brings a lot of burnt and charred notes.

Entspannter Relax Hampden. Inzwischen gutes PLV, die Preise heutzutage sind ja leider geisteskrank geworden.

Nose initially closed, but opens with time and increasingly releases aromas of trop. Fruits and solvent free with a slight glue note in the background. On the palate predominantly trop. Fruits with a slight floral touch.

The nose is what I like best about this rum. First sweet chocolate and coconut, then more cask and dried fruit, stewed fruit and dunder. Pomaceous fruit, caramel flan and red fruits on the palate. Relatively dry and woody finish. Doesn't really get me, unfortunately. Too woody and little Hampden. Has something of a Central American rum for me.