I should add that with the BBB it was the thicker meaty parts that had the ham flavour not the pieces with lots of fat. Maybe the fat to meat ratio makes a difference? Never had the ham flavour with belly bacon but I only cold smoke bacon now so that might also be a factor?
I noticed the jam flavor with really thick pieces as well. I didn't use any sugar with this batch. I wanted a pure bacon this round. But I'll be adding a small amount of sugar on the next one. I didn't want it to caramelize on me while cooking in the CI. Why is cold smoking better? What temp do you run at? I don't have the ability to cold smoke right now.