After a really nice meal, sometimes enjoy a good Cognac with dessert! Enjoy all the XO’s (Remy, Courvoisier, Hennessy, etc.) Best one tasted to date was a Hennessy Paradis! Any suggestions for other excellent XO quality or better Cognac?
Delamain Pale and Dry is my favorite. Their Vesper is even better; then there’s their vintage dated Cognacs!
Why not try an armagnac instead? Cerbois VSOP is pretty good.
If you know a spendy, generous friend who has a bottle of L’Or de Martell cognac, ($1000-$3000+ per bottle depending on when it was purchased) it’s worth a try. One of my colleagues opened one up and poured off about 180mL for me to try. I’m not a cognac aficianado, but the depth of aromas and mouthfeel is a step above “ordinary” XO.
Appreciate the input, never had L’Or de Martell or Delamain, but will seek them out. Generally get Cognac by the glass in a restaurant, and relatively new to them overall, so hopefully there are represented in restaurants we visit.
Tried a few Armagnacs Joe (believe they were in the 70/80’s and do not recall the producer). Thought they were ok, but did not seem to have the depth, power, and spice of some of the other Cognacs tasted. They may have been lower end? Will keep an eye open for the Cerbois!!
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You can massively upgrade AND save 50% right off the bat by getting as far from funding the marketing machines that are Hennessey, Courvoisier and Martel as possible. Try something from a producer like Ferrand or, especially, Tesseron. You will get the equivalent of the big three’s $300 bottles for less then half…
Just bought a bottle of Tesseron 76. Great nose of apricot, fig and plum. Smooth delivery, mellows out in the glass. Haven’t had anything better at the 85 dollar bracket. I highly recommend!
Thanks for the tip!
I love Marthe Sepia…About $120/bottle
Ferrand is excellent. Their “Ancestrale” is the best cognac I’ve ever had, and quite a bit cheaper than many of the big brand’s top bottles. That said, it’s still pretty steep. Their other, less expensive, cognacs are very good too.
Chateau Montifaud is also very good and relatively cheap for an XO level cognac. I used to be able to get that in Austin for ~$80/bottle.
+1… this is good stuff.
Unfortunately, KL doesn’t carry it anymore.
Picked up a bottle of 25 year aged Delord Bas Armagnac last night that I’ll try this weekend.