Rémy Martin XO Cognac

To say I bought two of the 50ml samples instead of a 750ml bottle from the other big cognac players - because they were affordable and were there, is redundant. I've consumed bottles of the VSOP releases from both Hennessy and Martell. But it's the Courvoisier that had them beat. The Courvoisier XO, however, has been wantonly expropriated by rap culture, due in no small part to Busta Rhymes 2001 hit, "Pass the Courvoisier". (Featuring P.Diddy, no less. Allow me the liberty to describe the track's lyricism as NSFW..... but, if it betters Courvoisier's bottom line, then, who am I to judge.) With this notion in my head ("What will my partner think?"), I decided to go with the Rémy Martin miniatures, instead. Fittingly enough, this was the one major cognac brand I'd never had. The nose is figs and raisins, with a vein of orange candy and red licorice. The nose becomes a tad drier with each sip, but the raisin notes linger while eclipsing into purple grape aromas. Sweet orange peel and red grapes on palate, before baking spices and leather take over. Following sips reveal light honey notes, which I found quite good. The finish is quite dry, more so than the Camus XO Elegance. But it leaves my mouth with a slight leathery feeling that I find pleasing - even as orange spice notes pop here and there. Is that a sign this holds a high ratio of decades old cognac? I don't doubt it. This is a very well designed cognac XO - especially the finish - but at a 45% price point over the Camus, I'm not convinced the premium is worth it. For the same price, I could pick up an exquisitely-aged scotch like a Glendronach 18 or Glenfarclas 25. And that's where I begin to question the overall VFM for this spirit, which is, afterall milder and less complex. (Disclaimer: this is only one of the five cognac releases I've had, so my limited experience should be put into consideration. Perhaps the sweet crap is what I enjoy at this stage?) At this point, I am considering just parenthetically separating cognac into a past phase, and moving on to armagnac. Nevertheless, if you feel you'd still enjoy the palate and wouldn't mind having a cool bottle (it resembles a ribboned Livesavers candy - said to reflect a waterdrop - and features a friggin' centaur on the label) - well, you could do much worse.

Rating: 16/23 The nose is spicy with a little bit of some light fruit - perhaps raisin with a dash of some cherry. I smell a little wood and some rancio. The palate is spicy with a lightly flavored oily background. For the spices, I get cinnamon, clove, and possibly ginger. There is a fair bit of floral vanilla and I also get some fruits that tend toward raisin with a dash of cherry and citrus. There's a long mellow woodiness that approaches a tea bag flavor, but skirts it. The flavor isn't as full as I'd expected, nor is it as deeply complex. I do get a bit of some kind of generic rancio in here. It's tasty and well-executed for sure, but it doesn't reach the level of richness or complexity that I expect of an XO, certainly one from a premium brand. It sort of reminds me of how it disappoints me that Jim Beam is always a bit lighter than other bourbons. This does have a nice mellow smoothness to it, though there is a kick from the spice. Overall, I think that this is at least a 15, but it's hard for me to justify giving it above a 17. I can actually imagine going down to a 14 some of the time. I'm contemplating between a 15 and a 16, but I think I need to land on 16.

Yes, I know. Big commercial brand, highly blended, contains caramel colouring... But this is an excellent cognac. The nose is complex, ripe fruits, citrus peel, spice, leather, oak, a touch of sandalwood... The mouthfeel is smooth and sophisticated. The taste? Fruity, but more along the lines of ripe plums and cooked peaches. There's a hint of spice and then the oak comes through, along with dried fruit and a faint touch of smoke. This remains one of my favourites.

Color : vsop보다는 진함 Nose: 부드럽고 따스한 카라멜 그리고 이를 잡아주는 spice와 포도 (건포도가 아닌 산뜻하고 fresh한느낌) 섬세하지만 복합미가.좀 아쉽다 부드러운 바닐라 rich보다는 섬세하며 볼륨감의.폭이 크지는 않다 전체적으로 산뜻하다 다행이도 grassy의 bittery?함은 없다 floral 보다는 herb에서 기인한 honey가 인상적이다(포도 줄기의 느낌) 오크의.우디함이.전체적인 틀을 잡아준다 Palate: 굉장히 부드럽고 soft하며 섬세하다 동시에 달달한 포도와 fresh하다 ,동시에 약간의 spice가 기분좋게 남는다 하지만 중간 맛이 좀. 비는 느낌이다 Finish: 기분 좋음.포도 카라멜(녹진하지는 않다 섬세함) - 좋게말하면 섬세하지만 좀 밍밍하다 중간 palate가 비는게 아쉽다 하지만 섬세하고 따스한 느낌은 좋다

Really nice and elegant to sip slowly. Nose: Aromas of ripe fruit and floral notes. Taste: Elegant on the palate with ripe plums, candied oranges, with hints of nuts and cinnamon with Smooth lingering finish. Holding the snifter in the palm of your hand warms it and that will open up the richness. But bottling this at 43% abv would’ve brought out more richness and better mouthfeel.

‎Цвет тёмный, крепкого чёрного чая, коричневый, с медным отливом. ‎В аромате сухофрукты, особенно чернослив, цветы, лесной орех, шоколад, аромат яркий, немного парфюмный. аромат мягкий, не спиртуозный. ‎Во вкусе чернослив, цветочные ноты, шоколадные тона, черный кофе. Вкус мягкий. ‎Послевкусие очень длинное, орехово-сухофруктовое. Розлив 22.05.2019. ‎95/100.