Velier Hampden Pagos 2024

Sherry forward for sure, but pretty well integrated. I’m not always one to enjoy wine finished spirits and I like this a lot. The sherry on the nose and late on the finish is loud, but well integrated on the palate and on the tongue into the finish. A little water opens it up some. Sacrilegious as this sounds, I’d think that this would be delightful over a large block of ice in front of a fire on a cold evening. It sure has enough body to stand up to a cube.

So now I've tasted all three Velier Hampden Pagos from 2022, 2023 and 2024 in parallel. The differences are then rather negligible and for me the conclusion is that they are all very sherry-heavy, some more and some less. Basically solid, but also interchangeable.

Balanced yet powerful, the typical Hampden aromas are well combined with the influences of the sherry casks. The combination of fruity, earthy and umami notes makes it a good, complex rum, but without lasting enthusiasm.

#5131 01.03.2025 tasting at Whiskymessen.dk 2025. Nose Light, round, light wood, fruits, light honey, light citrus, faint floral, light sherry, pineapple. Palate Round, fresh, light wood, light floral, fruits, cinnamon, light berries, sherry, light dried fruit, spice. Finish Medium long, fresh, light wood, dried fruit, light citrus, sherry, spice, light banana.

#4878 Whisky Live in Paris 27.09.2024-30.09.2024. Another great event meeting a lot of RumX new and old friends. This year three weren't as many new releases as in 2023, but I still had a great time. Nose Light wood, faint smoke, light nutts, light herbal, light sherry, fruits, pineapple, light dried fruit. Palate Round, fresh, light wood, light sherry, fruits, light pineapple, faint salt, dried fruit, faint nutts, faint coffee. Finish Medium to long, fresh, light wood, faint roasted, fruits, light nutts, cinnamon, light prunes. This is a really nice release and I love that the Olorosso cask hasn't taken over the profile. Well balanced and great ABV integration.

Wow, also Sherry ist hier wirklich sehr deutlich erkennbar. Ansonsten halt ein typischer Hampden. Wir haben viel Ester und tropische Früchte wie Banane und Ananas. Aber lässt sich gut trinken, wie alle Hampdens :-)

Franchement, super Hampden. On retrouve bien le côté colle/ester au nez, avec derrière une belle dose de fruits tropicaux bien gourmands. Le finish sherry claque en bouche, ça apporte beaucoup de caractère. Et les 52%, c’est pile ce qu’il faut pour avoir de la puissance sans être fatigant. Du très bon boulot, bien maîtrisé.

As with its predecessors, you can smell and taste the classic Hampden aromas. As with the 2022, the influence of the Olorosso cask is very dominant, but the flavors are generally weaker. My personal favorite is 2022

Sherry schon deutlich prominent, für mich etwas zu viel. Aber sehr süffig!

The new Pagos 2024, not quite as sweet as its predecessors but very sharp-edged in the mouth. A good rum but for me not very round and balanced overall. One sample is enough for me to test it.

Unverkennbar ein Hampden und unverkennbar ein ausgeprägter Sherryeinfluss. Das zieht sich neben den typischen Esternoten, tropischen Früchten und Sherry in allen Facetten durch. Ein guter Hampden den man easy sippen kann. Allerdings nichts besonderes

While the nose of batch 3 works well as the previous editions, the profile on the palate isn’t quite balanced in this one. The nose shows a nice combination of some esters from the Hampden and rich red fruits fruit the sherry casks. Good - in line with older editions. On the palate (at least from the freshly opened bottle), the Hampden notes seem to battle with the sherry rather than forming a balanced profile. It’s not terrible by any means, just a bit odd and less pleasant versus the two older editions.

Troisième opus de la série, ce Pagos s’inscrit parfaitement dans la romance entre Velier et le sherry. Le nez fait péter le sherry, les esters et les solvants avant de laisser s’exprimer les fruits sous toutes leurs formes : tropicaux (ananas), rouges, secs (noix) ou encore agrumes, il y en a pour tous les goûts. Le fût donne des nuances rôties, douces et très rondes aux narines. La bouche ne change pas tellement la recette : sherry et esters en tête, ananas, banane et fruits secs ensuite, puis des notes plus chaudes, notamment sur l’alcool, les épices, les noix rôties et le fumé. Le profil est rond, gouleyant et très concentré en arômes. L’alcool est bien intégré dans cette gourmandise jamaïcaine. La finale est de bonne facture, sèche, rôtie et esterisée, parfumée au sherry et aux fruits exotiques et assaisonnée de cannelle et de piment. Un Hampden jeune et plutôt bien fait, avec pas mal de nuances et de rondeur. Cette version ne change pas de façon significative par rapport à la cuvée initiale, s’inscrivant dans la continuité de la série.

Too smoky and too sweet and one-dimensional for me personally.

Whisky Live Paris 2024 (trade fair evaluation, only overall rating and personal recommendation to buy): From first impressions, I like it better than previous versions of the Pago. The sherry influence is clear on the nose but less intrusive on the palate. I would have to try it again in direct comparison, it was already late... I'm not sure yet whether I need a bottle.