Clairin Vaval
Clairin · Distillerie Arawaks (Chelo)
Clairin Vaval is rum stripped to its most elemental — no aging, no blending, no polish. What remains is terroir in a glass: the wild, indigenous sugarcane of southern Haiti, fermented with native yeasts and distilled once. It's a spirit that demands curiosity and rewards it with a flavor profile unlike anything else in the rum world.
Nose
Intensely aromatic — overripe tropical fruits and banana are immediate, with a grassy agricole quality underneath. There's a funky, almost yeasty fermentation character, and hints of citrus peel and raw sugarcane round out a wild, vivid nose.
Palate
Full and surprisingly textured for an unaged spirit. Tropical fruit and sugarcane juice flavors dominate, but there's an earthy minerality and a peppery spice that gives the palate shape. The agricole grassiness carries through, and a faint coconut sweetness appears mid-palate.
Finish
Long and persistent, with lingering tropical fruit, a touch of banana, and a clean herbal fade.
- Base Ingredient
- Fresh sugarcane juice (indigenous varieties)
- Distillation
- Single distillation in copper pot still
- Country
- Cavaillon, Haiti
Cocktail Suggestion
Ti' Punch Vaval — 2 oz Clairin Vaval · 0.5 oz cane syrup · 1 lime disc (squeezed) · Build in a rocks glass, stir briefly, no ice or over a single cube as preferred.
Food Pairing
Grilled whole snapper with lime and Scotch bonnet
Produced by Michel Sajous's neighbor Chelo at the small Distillerie Arawaks near Cavaillon, Haiti, Clairin Vaval is made from indigenous sugarcane varieties, fermented with ambient yeasts, and distilled in a rudimentary copper still — a practice essentially unchanged for generations.
Be the first to comment.
Leave a comment
New Riff Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Bottled in Bond
New Riff
New Riff's BiB is proof that transparency in production translates to transparency in the glass. The non-chill-filtered, sour mash approach with a high-rye mash bill produces a bourbon of clarity and conviction. At this price point, it overdelivers consistently.
Tomatin 18 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Tomatin
Tomatin 18 is one of the Highlands' most underrated age-statement malts. The combination of first-fill oloroso sherry casks and refill bourbon barrels creates a layered, elegant whisky that never shouts. It rewards careful attention with steady, deepening complexity.
Plantation Fiji Islands 2017 Single Cask
Plantation
This Fiji single cask bottling from Plantation delivers the transparency that the series is designed to showcase—a specific distillery, a specific year, a single cask's personality on display. The double aging in Fiji and then in Ferrand cognac casks in France adds structural complexity while preserving the distillery's characteristically lush tropical profile.
Gran Centenario Plata Tequila
Gran Centenario
Gran Centenario Plata demonstrates that entry-level tequila need not sacrifice character. The selección suave process—a brief rest in new American oak—adds a whisper of complexity without masking the agave. This is an honest blanco that works beautifully in cocktails but merits straight sipping on its own.
Plantation Fiji Islands 2017 Single Cask
Plantation
This Fiji single cask bottling from Plantation delivers the transparency that the series is designed to showcase—a specific distillery, a specific year, a single cask's personality on display. The double aging in Fiji and then in Ferrand cognac casks in France adds structural complexity while preserving the distillery's characteristically lush tropical profile.
Mount Gay Black Barrel
Mount Gay
An underappreciated workhorse that punches well above its price — pot-still character and aggressive cask charring give it backbone where many entry-level aged rums go soft.
Vulcão Grogue de Cabo Verde
Vulcão
A rugged, terroir-driven cane spirit that rewards adventurous drinkers. Less polished than agricole, more elemental — and all the better for it.
Foursquare Exceptional Cask Selection Mark XXIII 'Covenant'
Foursquare
Richard Seale continues to define what serious Barbadian rum can be. This 14-year blend of pot and column still distillates shows the depth and nuance that earned Foursquare its reputation. At cask strength, it's intense but never harsh — a rum that commands your full attention and gives back generously.