Clairin Vaval 2020 - Unaged Haitian White Rum from the Arawaks Distillery in Haiti #RumReview #ClairinReview #WhiskyTube #Clairin #Haiti #HaitianRum #ArawaksDistillery #WhiskyLock
I totally agree with this assessment. Of the five I have reservations only about the last one. Clairin Sajous is by far the best, then Casimir; Vaval; Sonson; and finally Le Roche. You really should own all of them vintage by vintage. My friends and guests are loving it and sharing. Thanks for helping me find it.
It's great to hear about other people having a ball discovering Clairin 🇭🇹 👍 Also really interesting that people rank them so differently. I think it probably shows how the various distilleries are producing very different styles. Keep spreading the word and cheers 🥃
Thank you for the great review Shane, it’s a real pleasure seeing you enjoy this so much. I have not had the pleasure to try a Clairin, but nonetheless your tasting notes brought me back to a short stay in Guadeloupe and sampling the local funky, artisanal made white agricole rum. If you have a chance to try some white Bielle agricole rum, funky, fruity and somehow relatively smooth at 59%. White Agricole Ruhms put the concept of „funk“ in many single malts to shame 😁.
I hear you! Those rustic white rums can be real flavour bombs. And it shows how different rum is to whisky that maturation is an option rather than a requirement 👍 I'll keep an eye out for your recommendation. Cheers 🥃
I started with the Communal as well, but I didn’t particularly like it as a supper or a mixer. The single estate bottlings are well worth the higher price.
Ah I really enjoyed Communal. I expected the lowish strength to annoy me but it didn't and I liked the flavours. Agreed that the single estate bottles are a step above though. Wonderful stuff 🥃
Thank You for interesting review. I had Clairin Vaval few years ago. I don't know, which batch it was, but ABV was 49,3. Very unique and unconformistic. Almost too unique. I don't think I will replace it or buy another Clairin-too eccentric for my taste, but I do understand why some people love Clarins. When I poured first dram of Vaval, my wife asked me to drink it in another room :). She said, that this stuff smell horrible, even Laphroaig is more pleasant :).
IMHO... absolutely! It's not for everyone but if you're looking for a weird fruit bomb of a clairin then I think it's the one to get. I love it and need a backup bottle or three ASAP. Cheers John 🥃
Thanks for reviewing this one Shane! I just bought a bottle each of the Vaval and the Sonson. They only arrived a couple of hours ago so haven't opened them yet. They are on special this week from the retailer in their end of financial year sale. Both of these are 2018 versions, the Vaval is 50.6% and the Sonson is 53.2%. Can't wait to try them. Cheers!
Very nice! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. I loved the 2018 Sonson. It's probably the wildest clairin I've ever had. I have a 2020 Sonson which is also very good but not close to the 2018. So congratulations! Cheers 🥃
@@WhiskyLock I've opened them now and WOW! Loving them. Big fruity, ester aromas and flavours and very different to any other spirit I've had. I agree the Sonson is wild. The Vaval is a bit tamer. Unfortunately, I don't know about the ongoing availability here. There is only one retailer who sells Clairin, and it seems to be a one-off import. Cheers!
@@SimonneNZ Excellent! Hopefully availability will continue for both of us. I believe there's mainly just one importer in the UK too so you never know... I'll probably get a few backups just in case. Welcome to Team Clairin and cheers 🥃
This rum sounds very interesting Shane! Thanks for such an interesting and highly informative review! I love the term, "Eccentric flavours!!" That's fabulous! Cheers!! 🙂
Another great spirit review! Thank you sir. After hearing your comments about clairin, I’m really interested to know what you think of imo (sweet potato) shochu from south Kyushu. Cheers!
Ah interesting! Honestly I haven't tried much. Every now and then I look into Shochu but it's proving harder to get hold of. I would love to try some good stuff though. Do you have any recommendations?
@@WhiskyLock Imo shochu from Kagoshima etc is not easy to get here in the 'States either. When I was in Kagoshima, Mitake and Shiranami were really common labels, and both deliver a good punch of funky, Kagoshima sweet potato liquor flavors. Interestingly, Honbo Shuzo, the company behind the Komagatake and Tsunuki whisky distilleries also produce a lot of shochu.
@@WhiskyLock Here we are, bought the 2022 in June, opened today. At first it smells like my compost bin the day after having prepared a fruit salad. On closer sniff, cheesey-dairy, grassy- tomatoleaf, tiki tropics with pineapple at the forefront and a hint of strawberry, glue, lots more, I love it. Taste is also really nice, sweet, agricole-like grassy, some of the fruitiness. A great suggestion!
Taste for me was like if a mezcal, Islay scotch, and strawberry daiquiri had a baby 😂. Funk level off the charts.
Oh that's spot on! 👍 it's weird and a little bit sad that more people aren't talking about Clairin!
I totally agree with this assessment. Of the five I have reservations only about the last one. Clairin Sajous is by far the best, then Casimir; Vaval; Sonson; and finally Le Roche. You really should own all of them vintage by vintage. My friends and guests are loving it and sharing. Thanks for helping me find it.
It's great to hear about other people having a ball discovering Clairin 🇭🇹 👍 Also really interesting that people rank them so differently. I think it probably shows how the various distilleries are producing very different styles. Keep spreading the word and cheers 🥃
Thank you for the great review Shane, it’s a real pleasure seeing you enjoy this so much. I have not had the pleasure to try a Clairin, but nonetheless your tasting notes brought me back to a short stay in Guadeloupe and sampling the local funky, artisanal made white agricole rum. If you have a chance to try some white Bielle agricole rum, funky, fruity and somehow relatively smooth at 59%. White Agricole Ruhms put the concept of „funk“ in many single malts to shame 😁.
I hear you! Those rustic white rums can be real flavour bombs. And it shows how different rum is to whisky that maturation is an option rather than a requirement 👍 I'll keep an eye out for your recommendation. Cheers 🥃
Clairin is fantastic. I love the Sajous.
It really is 👍 I have a bottle of Sajous. Probably the most elegant and classy clairin IMHO. I love them all.
I'm going out to buy one, wonderful review. Let's keep haiti in prayer.
Absolutely. May peace be in their future 🥃🇭🇹
I'm a little late in catching this, but great review! Spread the word, man.
Thanks Scott! Converting WhiskyTube to clairin one view at a time 👍🇭🇹
Thanks!
Thank you for supporting the channel 😌🙏🥃
I started with the Communal as well, but I didn’t particularly like it as a supper or a mixer. The single estate bottlings are well worth the higher price.
Ah I really enjoyed Communal. I expected the lowish strength to annoy me but it didn't and I liked the flavours. Agreed that the single estate bottles are a step above though. Wonderful stuff 🥃
Thank You for interesting review. I had Clairin Vaval few years ago. I don't know, which batch it was, but ABV was 49,3. Very unique and unconformistic. Almost too unique. I don't think I will replace it or buy another Clairin-too eccentric for my taste, but I do understand why some people love Clarins. When I poured first dram of Vaval, my wife asked me to drink it in another room :). She said, that this stuff smell horrible, even Laphroaig is more pleasant :).
Hi Marius. I'm glad you gave clairin a try. I can understand how it's not for everyone but what an experience, right? Cheers 🥃
Great infectious review Shane! It’s $52 here…is it a must buy🧐
Cheers 🥃
IMHO... absolutely! It's not for everyone but if you're looking for a weird fruit bomb of a clairin then I think it's the one to get. I love it and need a backup bottle or three ASAP. Cheers John 🥃
Thanks for reviewing this one Shane! I just bought a bottle each of the Vaval and the Sonson. They only arrived a couple of hours ago so haven't opened them yet. They are on special this week from the retailer in their end of financial year sale. Both of these are 2018 versions, the Vaval is 50.6% and the Sonson is 53.2%. Can't wait to try them. Cheers!
Very nice! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. I loved the 2018 Sonson. It's probably the wildest clairin I've ever had. I have a 2020 Sonson which is also very good but not close to the 2018. So congratulations! Cheers 🥃
@@WhiskyLock I've opened them now and WOW! Loving them. Big fruity, ester aromas and flavours and very different to any other spirit I've had. I agree the Sonson is wild. The Vaval is a bit tamer. Unfortunately, I don't know about the ongoing availability here. There is only one retailer who sells Clairin, and it seems to be a one-off import. Cheers!
@@SimonneNZ Excellent! Hopefully availability will continue for both of us. I believe there's mainly just one importer in the UK too so you never know... I'll probably get a few backups just in case. Welcome to Team Clairin and cheers 🥃
Have been wanting to get a bottle of this for a while now and your review has pushed me to make a purchase soon. Cheers for the review mate 🥃
Hope you enjoy it as much as I am 🥃 Cheers!
This rum sounds very interesting Shane! Thanks for such an interesting and highly informative review! I love the term, "Eccentric flavours!!" That's fabulous! Cheers!! 🙂
Thanks Christine. I really do love clairin. Not only is it very good but its really unique. Even compared to other rums. Cheers 🥃
Another great spirit review! Thank you sir. After hearing your comments about clairin, I’m really interested to know what you think of imo (sweet potato) shochu from south Kyushu. Cheers!
Ah interesting! Honestly I haven't tried much. Every now and then I look into Shochu but it's proving harder to get hold of. I would love to try some good stuff though. Do you have any recommendations?
@@WhiskyLock Imo shochu from Kagoshima etc is not easy to get here in the 'States either. When I was in Kagoshima, Mitake and Shiranami were really common labels, and both deliver a good punch of funky, Kagoshima sweet potato liquor flavors. Interestingly, Honbo Shuzo, the company behind the Komagatake and Tsunuki whisky distilleries also produce a lot of shochu.
When are you switching your channel name to Clairin Lock 😅 ?
I do need to try this stuff...
Now there's an idea 😅 I highly recommend this clairin for anyone who likes more extreme spirits with a strong funky fruitiness. Cheers 🥃
@@WhiskyLock Here we are, bought the 2022 in June, opened today. At first it smells like my compost bin the day after having prepared a fruit salad. On closer sniff, cheesey-dairy, grassy- tomatoleaf, tiki tropics with pineapple at the forefront and a hint of strawberry, glue, lots more, I love it. Taste is also really nice, sweet, agricole-like grassy, some of the fruitiness. A great suggestion!
👍🏻🥃😊