Clairin Vaval Single Estate Haitian Sugarcane Juice Rum (750ml)

Staff Reviews

KM

Keith Mabry

Keith Mabry

This trio of Haitian single-estate rums is downright revelatory. Each fits a particular profile for me in how I would approach consuming them. The Vaval is pure earthy goodness and speaks volumes with a cocktail approach. The aromas of plantain, artichoke and green olives emerge with the potency to stand out and keep their integrity with a little mixology in play. Keep it on the simple side, a daquiri is all you need. Great stuff!

Notes

The Arawaks Distillery is located in the village of Cavaillon in the southern or "Sud" province of Haiti. There Fritz Vaval harvests cane for his special rum by hand. The hand-cut cane, in this case of the varietal "Madame Meuze," is collected pressed and into the fermenters within a few hours. The rustic open-air distillery creates the perfect conditions for spontaneous wild fermentation and the incredibly volatile soup of fresh sugarcane juice feeds numerous yeast and bacteria that live naturally on the cane and in the distillery. The wart is distilled to proof in a hand-built pot still and bottled at a hefty 97.6 proof. The aromatics are unprecedented, without the hard edge butyric quality that some agricole rhum can exhibit. Instead it comes closer to an agave spirit, pointed with deep tropical fruit and earthy, peppery spice. The green grassiness that cuts across all Clairin is there, but the savory spice takes over on the palate. It's long and linear with a vibrant acidity that tempers the wild funky spice slightly. Ultimately bizarre, yet strangely drinkable, there's no wonder Clairin has been described as the mezcal of rum. This is a true product of terroir that could only exist as a confluence of the nature, art and science at the little distillery named for the original inhabitants of this unusual island in the Caribbean, the Arawaks.