Aroma visualization from community tastings
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003
Dried fruit, banana bread, licorice and warm oak, with tobacco and dark chocolate underneath. This 18-year tropical-aged Appleton pot still runs low on the ester funk many expect from Jamaica — several tasters mistook it blind for a Guyana or Trinidad rum. The 63% sits so well integrated most wouldn't guess the strength. It needs air; give it time and the fruit blooms.
The community says- Beautifully integrated 63%
- Complex, layered
- Can turn bitter
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Buy Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003:
Compare all 7 shop offers from 193.14 €
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The look inside the bottle
How does Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003 taste?
Aggregated from 190 community reviews.
Balanced, oaky Jamaican with tamed funk Loved across the board for its balance and buried strength — banana, spice and gentle oak. A few find it too woody, bitter or, for some, a touch too polished and tame.
Fans of aged, wood-driven Jamaican pot still with tamed funk
Anyone chasing loud high-ester Hampden funk
How the community classifies this rum. Each category takes you to similar rums.
75 of 190 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
How is Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003 rated?
RumX’s 0–10 scale is strict: 8.7 sits in the “Very good” band. 98% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 0% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
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Current bids for this rum at Europe's leading auction houses.
Community voices
What does the community say?
6% rate it between 6 and 8. 20 selected write-ups from 190 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by Oliver
Most helpful positive review
Very coherent low-ester Jamaican. Spicy, earthy and just the right amount of fruitiness.Very nice Abfüllubg! In the top 3 of the Hearts Collection series.
Review by crazyforgoodbooze
Most helpful mixed review
Very herbal, earthy-spicy nose with lots of glue and some banana. The taste is then extremely woody, bitter licorice, strongly burnt tones, nutmeg, iodine, menthol and glue, alcohol could be much better integrated and the fruit nodes are simply hard to find here even after almost an hour of breathing... Too woody, bitter and herbal for me personally and not quite what I look for & like in a Jamaica rum. I can't understand the hype & the price for this bottling with the best will in the world...🤷🏼♂️ but in direct comparison to the new 2002, it is much more harmonious and complex and also more drinkable! Update: almost passed for an old TDL in the blind test, awesome! Unfortunately I still don't warm to it, too bitter, too burnt, too alcoholic...
Review by Joachim Guger
A very nice balanced nose. Dried fruit dominates, restrained barrel maturity given the age. Unlike the other Hearts, no solvents. Alcohol perfectly integrated. In the mouth very powerful, full warm. Now very spicy and black olives. Complex. A great Appleton. High craftsmanship. Perhaps a bit too well-behaved at the end. Closest in flavor profile to the Rare Blend. Appleton Hearts 2003 - 2002 - 1993 Nose: All three very, very similar. Same marque? Banana bread, dried apples, licorice, caramel, fine spice, glue and glue. Powerful and warm. Compared to the 2003, the 2002 is a bit drier, dustier, a bit more licorice and less fruit . The 1993 is a bit woodier and more complex. All three great. Mouth: 2003 and 2002 again very similar. The 2002 a bit woodier and spicier. The 1993 then again... perhaps a touch too much. Conclusion: all three shine with a beautiful flavor profile. All three highest craftsmanship in terms of quality, integration of alcohol and wood maturity. The latter also applies to the 1993, 29 years of tropical storage and - matter of taste - just fine. Which one do I like best? Difficult decision, probably the 2002. What do I miss? The variety. How many marques can Appleton muster? Is that all after 7 bottlings? Edit: Now the bottle is empty. A great bottle, a pleasure every time.
Review by Jakob
Good rum, similar DNA, but somewhat fresher and with more fruit than the representatives from the 90s. Harmonious extension of the Hearts series, wonderfully demonstrates the potential of the "younger" tropically aged Appletons.
Review by zabo
Edit Edit: Day 7 in the 2024 calendar and completely wrong again. I hate blind tastings 🤣 Edit: A dream to be able to try the whole Appleton Hearts series. 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. Day 3 RumX Calendar I've had a sample of this one sitting around for ages, I wish I'd opened it. A very tasty piece once again. Many thanks for that. Unfortunately it tasted so good that I had to buy another bottle.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
#4025 A nice complex nose with fruit, wood and some spice. A very fresh nose with earthiness to it. The palate is only lightly bitter with wood, light fruit, caramel and nuts in the foreground. The finish is medium to long with wood and dried fruit. Price to quality is pretty good when remeased.
Review by RumTaTa
This is my first Appleton Rum and I must say shame on me for not having tried a rum from this distillery before.The nose is already very inviting and wonderfully balanced. The alcohol is only subtly noticeable.On the palate, the alcohol is very much there and introduces an extraordinary explosion of flavors. This is abruptly over with the gentle impressions of the nose and the force of barrel, spices and rusty notes takes over. The medium-long finish has the emphasis on that and spice, a slight not disturbing bitterness comes to it.A very good rum, which causes me to try more bottlings of Appleton.
Review by Maxence
Nose is quite nice with some spicy and earthy notes, some fruits and pastries. Mouth is quite similar. Everything is fine but not my kind of favorite profile 🤷
Review by Tschusikowsky
RumX Advent 3.12.23 Der Rum schmeckt nach tropischer Lagerung, leicht salzig, Trockenfrüchte, anklang von Litschis, Kirsche, eventuell etwas Menthol/Minziges im Abgang. Auch eine gute Portion Holz. Irgendwie zieht es mich hier in Richtung St. Lucia. Der Alkohol finde ich für das aber sehr gut eingebunden. Mein Guess war: die Chairmans Abfüllung von RumX und GotA. Finde den Rum sehr lecker. Retasting: St. Lucia Eindruck bleibt. Der Alkohol ist sehr kräftig aber passend eingebunden. Die Ester machen sich im Mund ebenfalls bemerkbar. Sirupartiger Tabak mit viel tropischen Früchten.
Review by Alex1981
RumX Calendar 2024 Day 7: first impression on the nose Funk & cookie dough, slightly alcoholic. Reminiscent of St. Lucia. Becomes better integrated with a little time in the glass, more sweetness appears in the background, sugar cane. Roasted notes and dark fruit are added. Delicious! Strong, edgy, alcoholic in the mouth. Seems to be quite high abv. Long finish, but the alcohol drowns out everything else. Nose top, mouth rather flop. Stick with St. Lucia, but could be anything.
Review by cigares
RumX Advent Calendar, Day 7. An expressive, complex nose with lots of fruit, pineapple and banana, but also yellow fruit, apple and quince, a sweet, herbaceous side. The wood is discreet. Expressive on the palate, the alcohol perfectly supports the fruit aromas, with more wood than on the nose. A smoky woodiness follows. The finish is moderately long, not so complex but incredibly well-balanced and tasty. An expressive and delicious rum!
Review by WiltChamberlain
A dream for single malt enthusiasts like me.
Review by Christoph
Kiba (juice with cherry and banana). Pineapple and orange in the mouth. Out the back it becomes woodier and more bitter, but very pleasant. Alcohol extremely well integrated.
Review by Timo Groeger
RumX Advent calendar day 7 - for me the best so far. Has a really great nose, vanilla and caramel, but wood is also recognizable here. Continues on the palate, with chocolate and some liquorice. Many thanks to the RumX team.
Review by Gunnar Böhme "Bauerngaumen" 🤓
Subsequent tasting of the rum from 03.12.2023 of the RumX Christmas calendar: Now that's a tasty treat! To my shame, I have to confess that I've never had an Appleton in my glass before. That's about to change, because this Appleton was really convincing. I particularly liked this warm, Jamaican oiliness.
Review by Manuel
RumX Adventskalender 2024: Nr. 7 Sehr intensiver Rum bei dem der Alkohol gut eingebunden sind. Würde auf etwas längere tropische Lagerung tippen. Tolle Aromen von Vanille, Rosine und Gewürzen. Gefällt mir sehr gut.
Review by mto75
Nose and palate are very consistent, a good balance of tropical and dried fruits, caramel, spices, cappuccino and subtle funk. The toasty notes come through a bit more on the palate, finishing with cocoa and a slight - not at all unpleasant - bitter note. On par with the 94!
Review by LukaŽiga
8,8:On the nose, typical markers with esters, glue, tropical fruits like a banana, spicy and roasted wood with nuts, caramel, earthy molasses with tobacco. On aeration(really needed), an orange and a pineapple pop up, the molasses is herbaceous, dark with a licorice, the would helps burnt sugar and vanilla. 8,5:On the palate, the attack is mostly spicy, woody with a little help of banana, esters, solvents.It needs time to settle down, becomes balanced, indeed it is a complex rum.Roasted wood begets caramel, dark chocolate, nuts, burnt sugar is caramelized, the molasses is herbaceous and earthy with tobacco, dark with licorice.Some pineapple and orange help with rounding, unfortunately menthol doesn't,... well honey helps. 😃 8,6:The finish is dry and tannic, balanced, the molasses is mineral and minty, a tasty crunchy bread note shows up, even rubber, a combination of wood notes and tropical, dried fruits, honey keep the roundedness is in check. Edit:30.4.25
Review by Giorgio Garotti
A bomb this Appleton!Intense, toasty with a very pronounced bitter note in the tasting but not annoying.With some aeration in the bottle it will definitely become rounder.Unquestionably a great rum!
Review by Thunderbird
A wonderful rum... very elegant, pleasant and complex! Simply beguiling!
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Expert reviews
3 critics scored it, averaging 9.1/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by Le Blog À Roger
Read full review →
Expert review by Rum Runner Labs
Read full review →A really compelling installment in the Appleton Hearts collection. Fruity and earthy on the nose, its juicy without leaning much in the ethyl acetate direction. On the palate the cask shows up, plenty of spice and oak notes, balanced nicely with dried banana and pineapple. Satisfying finish.
Expert review by The Fat Rum Pirate
Read full review →It is dangerously drinkable even at 63% ABV. I'll answer the question though which do I prefer the 1984 or 2003? I'd probably go for a bottle of this, given the choice - but I think both rums over something completely different. Both have been rums I have been really...
Details about Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003
A Pot Still Rum from Jamaica, bottled by Velier, at 63%.
Community purchases
286 bottles logged by 211 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
8% opened, 16 emptied and repurchased.
What does Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2003 cost?
Community paid 188–280 €.
Current best price: 193.14 € – within the typical community range.
What members actually paid for their bottles. A typical range, not the current shop price. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
+6 purchases in the last 3 months.
Added to collections, last 12 months — dark bars are the last 3.
286 purchased · 193 tasted · 70 wishlist · as of
About the Appleton Estate distillery
The Appleton Estate distillery is located in Jamaica. Rums from Appleton Estate have been reviewed 4,294 times with an average of 7.8/10.
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Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1995Dark, woody 25-year Jamaican with dirty funk
Hampden Great House (Distillery Edition 2022)
Hampden Great House (Distillery Edition 2022)Fruity, ester-driven Jamaican, lighter than siblings
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2002
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 2002Fruity, oaky Jamaican with light funk
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1993
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1993Old, wood-driven Jamaican with mint and tannin
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1984
Velier Appleton Hearts Collection - 1984Gorgeous nose, brutally woody palate
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Oliver · FounderBy rum lovers, for rum lovers
I'm Oliver, and RumX began in 2018 as a small passion project in Stuttgart, back then under the name Rum Tasting Notes.
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