A Short Celebratory Verticale of Six Top-Notch Cognac


July 30, 2023

A word of caution
Let me please remind you that my humble assessments of any spirits are done from the point of view of a malt whisky enthusiast who, what's more, is aboslutely not an expert in rum, brandy, tequila, vodka, gin or any other spirits. Thank you – and peace!

We are 21, Session 3

Down to the 19th century
(A Short Celebratory Verticale of Six Top-Notch Cognac)

We went down to beyond 1900 last time – although that Comtes de Mareuil 1893 was a little tired, WF 86 – but since this is our 21st anniversary, we'll try to dig even deeper into History. Now remember that, I strongly insist, we're always trying cognacs or any other spirits from the point of view of a malt whisky enthusiast.

Let's see what we have on the table today, and perhaps try to have one expression per decade, from the 1980s down to the… well, we'll see… Oh, and since we used to talk a lot more about music in the early days of this somewhat anarchic website, let's see if you can identify the names of the emblematic musicians from each decade, whose pictures I will add under each cognac... Answers at the end, but first, just a little apéritif in the form of a brand new XO done in partnership with a not-so-unknown house.... Good vibes here...

Apéritif please...

Mona Moore 'XO' (42%, OB, Hi Wine & Spirits and Vallein Tercinier, Cognac, 2023)
This is a brand new XO, not readily available yet (sadly), composed of cognacs aged between 18 and 25 years old and produced by VT. Remember, in order to qualify as an XO, the minimum age of the youngest component must be of compte d'âge 10, so actually 11 years old (yes, it's complicated). What's more, before 2018 that used to be only 6, in any case I believe this new baby could as well have been called 'XXO' (Extra Extra Old, now legit I believe, minimum 14 years). But enough mathematical subtleties, poetry must rule, let's taste this Mona Moore… Colour: deep gold. Nose: in all softness, but with roasted nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts, some black turon) and chestnut honey with touches of liquorice, it's then rather geared towards heather honey, gorse, dandelions, one mint leaf, as well as the traditional ripe peaches and melons in the Fruit and Vegetable Department. Touch of coffee too. Very 'VT' (Vallein Tercinier, not Vendanges Tardives, mind you). Mouth: many stewed fruits, old boy's jam, even a hint of strawberry jam, then a wonderful, slightly sour (cherries) rancio that would remind us of some very, very old Pineau. Coffee and liquorice coating it all. Finish: medium, with some welcome tiny touches of old oak and tobacco, cinnamon rolls, plus hints of pepper and clove in the aftertaste. Comments: while many XOs are being bottled at 40%, the wee kick brought by the extra-2% vol. here makes a lot of difference. Wonderful middle-aged cognac bearing a very high drinkability index, with some sides reminding me of a certain Distillery in Craigellachie. Not Craigellachie Distillery. Could have been 30 or 40 just as well. Certainly my favourite recent XO, easily between 90 and 91, but because this is our 21st anniversary and since this excellent cognac's average age is 21 as well, it's going to be, tah-dah..…
SGP:651 - 91 points.

1980s

Bons Bois 1980/2023 (58.2%, Grosperrin for Zero Nine Spirits, Samurai series, 58 litres)

Grosperrin really are the kings of Bons Bois and Fins Bois; remember those lesser-known appellations are much harder to source than the usual Grande and Petite Champagne. But naturally, Grosperrin also have some stunning GCs and PCs… or Borderies of course. Colour: deep gold/light amber. Nose: some lovable varnish and paint, in the style of the best heavy bourbons. Good fun indeed. Acidic juice (lemon), white peaches, then new leather jacket, furniture polish; fermenting figs, liquorice and back to new varnish (at Ikea's). Love these kinds of profiles. With water: a little gentler and rounder, but it's still got this wonderful rustic varnish that makes me think of some … say Van Winkle. Mouth (neat): high-intensity arrival, a bit oaky (takes your tongue as if with a pair of pliers), very resinous and piney, with a lot of varnish again. Probably a little brutal, although we've often experienced this with high-strength cognacs, but to be honest I believe almost no one was drinking their cognac at such high degrees until very recently. With water: there, and voilà. Still a lot of pine resin and heavy liquorice, and some varnish of course, and I'm sure my old grandpa wouldn't have enjoyed this, but as a whisky guy I'm much pleased. Wonderful liquoricy tannins. Finish: very long, also with tart green apples and even more liquorice. Comments: the samurai on the label makes sense, it is a fighter.
SGP:373 - 89 points.

1970s

Jean-Luc Pasquet 'L79' (52.2%, Journal des Kirsch, Kirsch Import, Edition Nr 2, Petite Champagne, 2023)

From Mr. Piton's stock and part of a brand new series by Kirsch Import. It's good fun that French bottlers such as Nine Zero would use Japanese samurais on their cognacs, whilst our German friends would rather display French musketeers. We are the world… Colour: full gold. Nose: you see, this Petite Champagne is a little grassier, and certainly a little less varnishy, more on classic orchard fruits, especially plums and peaches. Greengages seem obvious to me, nectarines as well, fresh moist prunes, spearmint, and a tiny and wonderful whiff from a little bouquet of freshly cut violets (but absolutely not in the style of Bowmore 1985!) With water: not much to say now, this is perfect. It has everything, and all is neatly arranged, in the right order. Mouth (neat): impeccable concentration, many stewed fruits, jams, herbal teas and honeys, plus liquorice… but we'll remain seated while trying it with a little H2O. With water: it is an extremely cognacqy cognac. Once again, everything (fruits, herbs, spices, soft younger rancios, nuts, yada…) in the right order. Finish: vine peaches and heather honey as the signature. Comments: in fact there isn't much to say, this is just perfect. Good, I'll still add that it reminds me of some old official Highland Parks, perhaps the dumpies 'round black label'. Or was it 'black round label?'. Must be that heather honey…
SGP:661 - 92 points.

1960s

Mauxion 'Lot 60' (62%, Private bottling for Geert Lagast & Raf de Ruysscher, Petite Champagne, 2022)

Did you know that our Belgian friends snap up 90% of our best single estate cognacs? It's not an official statistic, but according to the archives of Whiskyfun, it's certainly accurate. What's more, 1960 is 'my' vintage, and 62 my age. Pure coincidence but I'm super-glad there are/were some wonderful spirits from that year, as the wines are usually… flat dead, except for a few wonderful Sauternes and other sweet wines.. Colour: deep gold. Nose: there, it's entered another dimension, full of autumn leaves, mushrooms, precious spices and ointments, old liqueurs and jams, old honeys; did you know that you could still eat some honeys that were harvested in the time of the pharaohs? The 62% don't even feel, mind you, which reminds me of some of G&M's super-old 'livets of Glen G. With water: cancel that, it's more like old Macallan of the same origin. I'm dead serious. Stunning ripe peaches and preserved ones. Mouth (neat): boy is this fat, heavy, jammy and piney. To be honest the 62% vol. do feel now. So… With water: and bonjour figs, dates, sultanas, quinces, honeys, apricot nectar and beeswax. It is just a little grittier (than the aforementioned Macallans). Finish: long, with absinth, peaches and honey having taken centre stage. Comments: I'll say it again (and again), in my book old aged spirits do converge. The 1979 was just a tad more assertive (love conceptual words in tastings).
SGP:661 - 91 points.

1950s

Vallein Tercinier 'Lot 58' (51.6%, Journal des Kirsch, Kirsch Import, Edition Nr 3, Petite Champagne, 2023)

More mousquetaires ! Just don't tell the Gascons of the pays d'Armagnac that you've put D'Artagnan on a bottle of… cognac. Now I'm sure it can be resolved over a small glass or five of Ténarèze... or Petite Champagne indeed for that matter. Colour: deep gold. Nose: no surprise here, this goes down to the core of fresh old cognac, this time with stunning pears poached in Sauternes (not a 1960!) plus extraordinary morello cherries, almond liqueur and, hold on, kirschwasser? I swear to Vishnu that I am not making this up. With water: small mushrooms, a touch of paprika, fig wine, tiny bits of old wood, old bachelor's jam, lemongrass, peach syrup, and a bucket of Bellini (made with Bollinger). Oh yeah, that's champagne with fresh peach purée. Mouth (neat): pine essence, black assam, sour cherries (once you've got them in your mind, you're dead), more almonds, sorb eau-de-vie (that's close)… With water: the old wood is adding some piney essences and old pu-her, but peaches and cherries keep it playful and even refreshing. Kind of. Finish: long, with some mentholated liquorice by way of signature. Comments: this one never felt demijohnned (you know we're afraid of nothing, vocabulary-wise). Which means that it could well be… hold on, 2023 – 1958 = 65 years old. Just a kid!
SGP:661 - 93 points.

1940s

Prunier 'Lot 42' (40.8%, OB, Wine4You, The Purist, Fins Bois)

Not too sure when this was distilled exactly. If that was before November 11, 1942, that was still 'Free France' (not sure you already had to wait until December back then) as the southern part of the country had not been invaded by the German troops yet. After November 11, it was 'Occupied France'. And provided they had kept the wines for a few years (should that be allowed back then) and only distilled them after September 2, 1944, it was 'Freed France'. Complicated vintage… Colour: gold. Nose: it went for the small herbs, fruit peels, leaves, mint leaves, mosses, small citrus, with touches of 'other woods', beech, sandal, balsa… It's probably the low strength rather than the long ageing that made it softer, more complex, more 'chamber music' than Led Zeppelin. Although I'm sure some LedZep exegetes would argue that Kashmir is chamber music… Mouth: it's this fragility that is very charming, it's gone towards grassy tropical fruits, oak balms (but that does not exist, does it) and herbal teas. Hay is obvious, mint tea – with pine nuts! - too. Charming. Finish: not that short, just give it time. Very amiable. Touches of 'plane mangos' and orange juice. A few sultanas in the aftertaste. Comments: indeed a charming very old little cognac that likes to play hide and seek with you. These are always difficult to fit into a vertical tasting, due to their low alcohol contents. This baby did very well, but blind, it would be more challenging, to be honest.
SGP:661 - 90 points.

And so we said six… Let's take a big leap into the past!

1870s

Château Jousson 'Sélection 1875' (OB, Fine Champagne, magnum, +/-1950)
An estate that used to be located in Angeac-Champagne, which is situated in Grande Champagne, just south of the city of Cognac (only 10km). The brand name appears to belong to Distillerie du Vieux Chêne, but I haven't seen any recent bottlings anywhere. This is a magnum that Angus poured at his wedding (Angus, please divorce and re-marry your dear wife many times over the next years). Imagine, 1875, Keith Richards was still pretty young back then, while they hadn't even invented the Harmony Meteor yet! Colour: light coffee. Nose: magnums keep better, even with spirits. Having said that, this is total old-school cognac, with many more raisins, rancio, figs, dates, dried pears, prunes and mead than in contemporary estate bottlings (we're not talking about the very average large-volume blends that never make it into WF Towers). Tiny bits of mushrooms, marrow, moss, some gravy, fruitcake… But some parts may stem from OBE. Mouth: oh, brilliant! Not all very old bottles keep this well, but remember it was a magnum, while I'm sure the original juice was first-class too. Many many smaller flavours, dried fruits of all kinds, Japanese dishes, Chinese dumplings, assorted sauces, pestos (pesti?), wines (not only grape wine), wine sauces, dried berries (raisins, longans, goji), balsamico, Worcester sauce… Let's stop now, this list would be endless. Finish: probably not as eternal as this old cognac, but saltier, more on sweet meat dishes, quenelles, game sauce… All that with an unexpectedly shiny, rocketing liquorice as the signature. Comments: imagine, 1875, that's the year of Bizet's Carmen. And when our friend Benjamin Disraeli was PM, he who said that he loved bad whisky 'because one gets so bored with good whisky'. Nah, TBH, actually, he said that about wine. Stunning old cognac, you could drink a whole… magnum. Thanks and cheers, Angus.
SGP:562 - 92 points.

The musicians were...

1980: Joe Zawinul (Weather Report). 1970s: Chet Baker. 1960s: John Coltrane. 1950s: Miles Davis. 1940s: Duke Ellington. 1870s: Georges Bizet. Indeed, piece of cake.

Check the index of all cognacs we've tasted so far