Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/3815
october 2009 / the tasting panel / 63 For some, making a cognac cocktail can be daunt- ing—especially when the cost of the primary ingredient can surpass the price of a customer's dinner entrée. That's why it goes into the mixing glass last. Solo in a snifter is more traditional and less intimidating. But no matter how it is served, cognac must be made, of course, in the Cognac region of France. And it must be double-distilled from wines produced from grapes (primarily Ugni Blanc) grown in six specifi c regions. Martell, founded in 1715 and oldest of the major cognac houses, only uses wines from the top four regions— Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies and Fins Bois—but focuses on Borderies, which gives its cognacs their distinctive fl oral characteristics. Martell's legendary Cordon Bleu, a blend of almost 200 eaux-de- vie averaging 25 years in age, is rich and elegant, like sipping a liquid forest. On the other hand, their Création Grand Extra, a blend of cognacs 50 to 100 years old, is seeped with essences of chocolate, orange and cedar. Cognac can only be distilled between November 1 and March 31 each year, a frantic time when copper pot stills are fi red up 24 hours a day. Jann Fillioux, Hennessy's seventh-generation Master Blender, tells of distillers forsaking their beds at home for a cot in the distillery so they can be on-hand every moment. Then comes the blending, barrel aging (in French oak, of course!) and periodic tasting over the years so the maître de chai, or cellarmaster, knows whether he has an eau-de-vie that will become a VS, or something much rarer, such as Pierre Ferrand's recently-released Collection Privée 1972 Cask Strength (87.6 proof), a 37-year-old Grande Cham- pagne cognac that started out as 60 barrels and ended up, due to the evaporation factor (the "angel's share"), as only six. With its butter-soaked fl avors of cherries, peaches and cedar, this is indeed a serious sip. "Although we talk about very old cognacs, you can see that we prepare now for future generations," said Jean- Marc Olivier, President, General Manager and Master Blender for Courvoisier, as he took me on a tour of their musty paradis, the cellar where the oldest eaux-de-vie are stored. I spied three bottles that dated from the French Revolution, two from 1789 and one from 1795, as well as "younger" barrels from 1950 and 1872 that, Olivier said, would not be blended until at least 2050. "But I know I will not be the one to blend these, be- cause I will be dead," he laughed. "That's why, when it comes to Cognac and cigars, I prefer to enjoy them now. In the range of Courvoisier, for me Napoléon is the best, because it's very full bodied but with a very elegant and discreet taste." Today, in addition to Napoléon, Courvoisier's blends Three perfect fi reside pours: (left to right) Martell Création Grand Extra, Courvoisier XO and Hennessy X.O. At the Hennessy guest house, Château de Bagnolet, a butler o≠ ers a pre-luncheon French classic, Hennessy X.O served over hollow balls of ice.