Aroma visualization from community tastings
Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (Ex-Caroni Casks) 2017
"I preferred the two previous" releases sums up the mood here: this is a soft, aged Haitian clairin with olive brine, overripe tropical fruit, glue and grass, plus a licorice-and-tar edge on the finish. Nearly everyone agrees the ex-Caroni cask barely shows — it mostly rounds the wild clairin into a gentle, slightly sweet sipper. Complex and oily, just not what the label promises.
The community says- Olive and overripe fruit
- Oily, soft texture
- Caroni barely noticeable
View price history
Secure payment Sold by Rhumlicious Returns & cancellation
- Secure payment. You pay via RumX with PayPal, Klarna or card. Your payment data is encrypted and we never store your full card details.
- Clear seller. Sold and shipped directly by the partner shop. And you're never on your own: RumX handles support and communication with the shop, so you always get excellent service, whichever shop you order from.
- Honest shop ratings. The stars show your service experience with the shop, not the rum score. They come from RumX users, and critical ones stay visible.
- Returns & cancellation. Your purchase contract is with the shop, so returns and cancellations run through them under their own policy and your statutory rights. If anything goes wrong, RumX helps you sort it out.
The look inside the bottle
How does Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (Ex-Caroni Casks) 2017 taste?
Aggregated from 177 community reviews.
Soft aged clairin, olive and light Caroni Well-liked as an aged clairin — olive, overripe fruit, licorice, oily texture. The near-universal catch: the Caroni cask is barely detectable, so expectations ran ahead of the glass.
Clairin fans who like olive-brine, funky vegetal profiles
Anyone buying it for a big Caroni tar hit
How the community classifies this rum. Each category takes you to similar rums.
65 of 177 left detailed tasting impressions · Click an aroma to explore similar rums
How is Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (Ex-Caroni Casks) 2017 rated?
RumX’s 0–10 scale is strict: 8.2 sits in the “Very good” band. 94% of tasters rate it Good or better; only 1% rate it below average. See the full rating guide →
Live auctions
Current bids for this rum at Europe's leading auction houses.
Community voices
What does the community say?
34% rate it between 6 and 8. 19 selected write-ups from 177 community ratings. You can view the complete list in our app.
Review by BTHHo 🥃
Most helpful positive review
Caroni tasting The taste is rich and intense with notes of dark honey, licorice, citrus and nutmeg.
Review by Jacques etdom
Most helpful critical review
Very disappointed, I was expecting something else. A nose of grapes and tangy fruit. The palate confirms this. Far too expensive for what it is, the term "caroni" must have inflated the price. For me, it's worth a third of the price.
Review by Stefan Persson
Overall a great, very smooth and soft Clairin. Tasted this aged Clairin at the Sweden Rumfest, May 2023. It’s from Mr. Michel Sajous distillery Chelo and released by Velier and Mr Luca Gargano. It’s made from cane syrup in pot still whereafter it’s tropical aged for 5 years in Ex-Caroni Cask.
Review by Mike H.
A little too dry and vegetal for me. Not really what I like to drink but the finish is rather nice. 2nd tasting: First of all the Caroni cask is nothing more than a marketing gimmick in my opinion and I believe that we will see more bottlings like this one in the future. I really favor my Clairin’s unaged. Here, the sweetness present overshadows most other notes except for the vegetal and slightly earthy ones. There’s a dryness and creaminess present as well. Add a little fruit, wood and very subtle spices and the result is a rum that makes me regret my bottle purchase. Luckily I purchased a sample as well, so I’ll be able to get rid of the bottle at a future date. I just reflected upon my rating and came to the conclusion that 78 points are too high. Reducing it to 75 points.
Review by Giorgio Garotti
I thought the caroni cask would give it some extra special flavor instead it just makes the clairin softer!An undemanding everyday drink that still contains all the scents and aromas of Haitian sugarcane!
Review by Johannes
Compared to the Casimir GRF clearly less fruity, more wood notes, astringent, more acidity, seems older. Caroni I can not really rausschmecken. Too bad, I expected something more.
Review by Thunderbird
I am somewhat ambivalent about this rum, I expected a clear Caronieinfluss! From this, however, is only fleeting something to perceive..if at all rather in the finish! On the nose predominate sour fruit flavors, on the palate initially a heavy sweetness, which in turn changes to a light sour fruitiness, later join licorice notes with a hint of dirty notes to it.The finish contains first licorice notes, approaches of dried fruit and later a touch of tar!The alcohol is barely perceptible, a little more percent would certainly have done him good!I would almost call him a sipper!Overall, a good rum, just different than expected!
Review by Gunnar Böhme "Bauerngaumen" 🤓
Nose: hui! 😋 Palate: not pfui, but really not intoxicating, is somehow too sour for me, we will not be friends.The great smell saves the rhum at 70 points over the finish line.
Review by Kevin Sorensen 🇩🇰
#4656 16.03.2024 just relaxing with John Wick 4 and a few rums 😊 Nose Light wood, faint roasted, fruity, ester, solvents, light olive, floral, light grass. Palate Oily, light wood, faint roasted, fruity, ester,light grass, glue, faint olive, medium dry, faint salt. Finish Medium long, oily, light wood, fruity, ester, light grass. The empty glass has some medicinal, light anise and herbal notes.
Review by Leo Krüper
Beautiful Clairin with olive notes. Not much left of the Caroni barrel. Alcohol well integrated. In the daiquiri comes across very much power despite the only 52%, but quite pleasant.
Review by mto75
perhaps it is so that the Caroni barrel and the brilliant, typical Sajous markers after olive, pear, earth as there are in the 2016 (RX 442), neutralize here somewhat. Also on the palate I can not detect any dirty workshop notes, instead a sweetness that I would not necessarily have expected so. Not a bad Sajous, but not necessarily what the packaging suggests.
Review by LukaŽiga
8,6:On the nose, very complex first impression, as there is a mix of vegetal, fruity, woody, medicinal notes like solvents, esters.A sugar cane honey is herbaceous and flowery, quite earthy, with hay and olive, spicy.Tropical fruits like banana, pineapple are overripe, with a help creamy, buttery roasted wood notes like nuts. On aeration, citrus, dried and red fruits arise, some meaty notes and, from ex Caroni cask finish, a rubber. 8,4:On the palate, the attack is again diverse, creamy with an olive, grass, tropical overripe fruits, esters, glue, pepper, brine, tar and rubber from ex Caroni finish.The wood is roasted with a caramel, leather, the sugarcane honey and licorice intermingle.When resting the rum nicely, the cane becomes flowery, herbaceous, earthy, the wood resinous, the fruits red and citrus. 8,3:The finish is long, dry and tannic, smoky, dirty, most of palate notes continue, a confectionery crunchy bread note nicely rounds the finish.. Edit:2.8.25
Review by Dr.Django
i like the clairin runs very much! there's a lot to discover here, even without storage. let's see how the series with the beautiful black and white labels performs and lives up to my expectations. 2017: I wouldn't have given this bottling five years. The alcohol could be better integrated, little barrel influence, which I find rather negative here. Generally very herbal with olives and herbs. Otherwise (light) fruity as usual. 76 pts. 2018: this is already "heavier", darker fruity and spicier. clear barrel influence. warm, fruity and full-bodied on the palate. Alcohol not optimally integrated here either. 80 pts. 2019: Seems to combine the first two perfectly! I like it very much. A full-bodied fruit basket with spices and astringency. It's a lot of fun! 86 pts.
Review by Oliver
Very good Clairin. The barrel aging makes it very harmonious and brings an exciting going pole to the "wild" base product. The Caroni influence comes through rather subtly. With a few drops of water, the Caroni comes through more.
Review by Christoph H.
Zu Beginn sehr schwer, fruchtig und intensiv. Er wirkt in der Nase sehr viel reifer und gehaltvoller als es das Alter vermuten lässt. Man hat zuerst die volle Packung konzentrierte Quittenmarmelade, Rabarber und Litchi. Dann folgen Mandel Essenz und Marzipan, mit etwas medizinischem und chemischen. Etwas kräutriges, was mich an die Limonade Almdudler erinnert kann ich auch nicht verläugnen. Gefällt mir erst mal sehr gut Im Mund kommt dann eindeutig die Jugend zur Geltung und er kann sein Alter nicht mehr verläugnen. Zu Beginn hat man eine extreme, fast schon künstliche Süße, welche mich einfach nur an weißen Industriezucker erinnert. Diese wird aber direkt von einem metallischen Einschlag und Chlor verdrängt. Nur noch im Hintergrund machen sich unreifen Quitte und grüner Apfel breit. Außerdem ist der Alkohl für 52,14 % überhaupt nicht gut eingebunden Die Nase verspricht erst mal sehr viel, was am Gaumen allerdings bei weitem nicht eingehalten werden kann
Review by cigares
Spirits Museum Tasting 29th of March 2025. A nose of dried herbs, pineapple and tropical fruit with a fermented edge. Sweet tropical fruit and dried herbs on the palate, with a fermented, metallic edge. The finish is short, on dry herbs.
Review by Michael Schou
01-04-2026 - Rate 7.5 Have tasted this one before but this is my first time reviewing it. It has tasted better before but it does not do it for me today. To much earthy and dirt taste today. Perhaps the Caroni cask was a better gimmick last time I tasted it
Review by Mentalo
Leicht aufgewertet, aber weiterhin etwas enttäuschend. Die Sajous-Süße überlagert fast alles. Im Abgang kommt dann leicht Caroni durch. Habe da auf mehr Balance gehofft, wie beim Sajous im Bielle Cask. So kann ich auch direkt zum 5 Jährigen Sajous greifen.
Review by alex
I had high expectations of this rum, which inevitably led to disappointment. All that's left of Caroni is the name on the packaging, but you can't smell it or taste it. All that's left is a good Sajous, but that's about as far as I go. Next --> A bit expensive too, especially for the result!
No reviews match this filter.
Expert reviews
2 critics scored it, averaging 8.3/10. Reviews from RumX's blog partners, independent experts who have tasted, evaluated, and described this rum..
Expert review by The Secret Rum Bar
Read full review →
Expert review by The Dunder Hut
This is nice. But I don't get any of the Caroni. I get a bit paranubes anejo vibes. But to be honest, it could do a bit less on olive and salt for me.
Details about Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (Ex-Caroni Casks) 2017
A Clairin from Haiti, bottled by Velier, at 52,14%.
Community purchases
244 bottles logged by 186 collectors.
A collector's bottle.
14% opened, 20 emptied and repurchased.
What does Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (Ex-Caroni Casks) 2017 cost?
Community paid 87–140 €.
Current best price: 150.13 € – above the typical community range.
What members actually paid for their bottles. A typical range, not the current shop price. Full price & collection history in RX+ →
244 purchased · 183 tasted · 52 wishlist · as of
About the Chelo distillery
The Chelo distillery is located in Haiti. Rums from Chelo have been reviewed 1,318 times with an average of 8.2/10.
To Chelo →You may also enjoy
Rum enthusiasts who like this rum have also given the following rums high ratings:
Velier Royal Navy
Velier Royal NavyDirty Caroni-led navy blend, deep and complex
Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (LMDW) 2018
Velier Chelo Vieux Sajous (LMDW) 2018Funky aged clairin, mango and glue
Habitation Velier Long Pond STC❤️E 2019
Habitation Velier Long Pond STC❤️E 2019Young, wild high-ester Long Pond
Velier Papalin Haiti 2018
Velier Papalin Haiti 2018Floral, grassy Haitian blend, gently aged
Velier Long Pond Cambridge STC❤️E 2010
Velier Long Pond Cambridge STC❤️E 2010Funky, fruity Long Pond ester bomb
Velier Chelo Clairin Vieux Sajous - Second Release 2017
Velier Chelo Clairin Vieux Sajous - Second Release 2017Aged Haitian clairin, floral, spicy, glue-tinged
Never miss a price drop.
Set a target price in the app, and we'll let you know as soon as the rum becomes available at that price from one of our partner stores. This works for any rum on your wish list.
Oliver · FounderBy rum lovers, for rum lovers
I'm Oliver, and RumX began in 2018 as a small passion project in Stuttgart, back then under the name Rum Tasting Notes.
What began as my digital tasting diary is now the world's most comprehensive platform for rum fans, today carried by a small team with Jakob, Lukas and Katharina, with Robert supporting us as a freelancer. We combine the collective intelligence of our community with an integrated marketplace, so you can choose with confidence, without paperwork, detours, or expert jargon.
Oliver, Stuttgart
About RumX →
