Velier Casimir Clairin Ansyen 21 mois #CARCA1 (Kirsch Whisky) 2016

Clairin is Haiti's village cane-juice rum, distilled from heirloom cane on wild, spontaneous fermentation, agricole in spirit even though the word cannot legally apply. This Casimir comes from Velier, the Genoa house that did most to bring clairin to a wider audience, and it spent roughly twenty-one months in a cask that previously held Caroni, the legendary closed Trinidad distillery.

Distilled on a pot still from fresh sugar-cane juice and bottled unsweetened at 50.1%, it keeps the lively, fruit-forward Casimir character while picking up a subtle savoury edge from the old wood. Pear and green apple esters lead the nose alongside fresh grass and herbs, and the palate is fruity and spicy with a gentle sweetness of ripe fruit rather than added sugar. Less ferocious than many cask strength clairins, it offers the wild Haitian profile in a more approachable, faintly Caroni-tinged form.