A Flood of Cognac It seems somewhat crazy that this time last year we were expecting cognac price increases to be as high as in previous years but, in actual fact, the price has held steady and may even drop. Suddenly we have an excess of very young, good cognac and distillers are seeking to find customers for unsold stocks.  So why has this dramatic change occurred? Well it is all to do with the big houses not needing to buy so much eaux de vie for their blends.  The vast Chinese markets have reduced considerably the quantity of top… Read more

Even in these times of austerity there is still money to be found for expensive tastes in alcohol.  Well, that is certainly how it would appear reading the recent news columns.  According to a Onepoll survey, the average Britain spends £49,581 on alcohol during their adult lifetime and those with really expensive tastes manage to rack their average bill up to a whopping £167,000.  Perhaps they are the customers who frequent Gigi’s restaurant in Mayfair where a cocktail, created in honour of the James Bond actress Grace Jones, retails for £9,000?  Made from 1990 vintage Champagne and 1888 vintage Armagnac,… Read more

More than 1000 people have paid $100 for a ‘Dragon Dog’, the world’s most expensive hot dog.  At the Vancouver restaurant ‘Dougie Dog’, the bratwurst is served soaked in $2000-a-bottle cognac, fried in truffle oil and topped with Kobe beef and fresh lobster.  The idea behind the 12″ hot dog was to provide “something super tasty but also high-end” and customers who have been tempted have all absolutely loved it.  Hot dogs are normally classed as Fast Food –  quick and cheap – but this one can profess to be neither.  It must be ordered 12 hours in advance and with… Read more

According to market analysts, 25% of European spirits imports in some Asian countries  are counterfeit. The refilling of empty high-end bottles is now the gold standard for counterfeiters, especially in China.  So, it is particularly good news to see the launch of ‘Capseal’, a device which prevents bottles from being refilled fraudulently.  A chip is connected to an antenna which is inserted on the neck of the bottle, just above the cork. When the cap is removed, the tag is mechanically deactivated.  By using a smartphone or NFC device to scan the chip embedded in the tag, anyone can easily verify the authenticity of the bottle, confirming that… Read more

We are delighted to announce that three of our new Hermitage Provenance range of single estate cognacs, produced for the Asian market, have won medals at the 2014 Cognac Masters Awards. The Hermitage Provenance Grand Champagne 10 year old, Grand Champagne 25 year old and Petite Champagne 30 year old were all awarded Masters Medals. This exciting array of awards proves that it is not just us that think our cognacs are the best, the judges were obviously bowled over too! Yet another accolade for our exceptional Hermitage Cognac Range – single estate, luxury, vintage cognacs with age statements – surely… Read more

We are often asked how long you can keep a bottle of cognac once it has been opened and the answer is for quite a long time – provided the bottle is stored upright and the cork replaced firmly every time you take some out.  Cognacs deteriorate in the bottle over time for many reasons, the most common being that the bottle has been stored lying down.  Strong spirit affects the cork to a far greater extent than wine does stored in the same position; this action compromises the flavour and allows air into the bottle.  The more air there… Read more

Traditionally made with 1 1/2 oz Cognac, 1 oz orange liqueur (Cointreau or Grand Marnier) and 1/2 oz lemon juice, the Sidecar is thought to have been invented around the end of World War I, most likely at the Ritz Hotel in Paris. It was made famous by Harry MacElhone’s, a bartender at the Ritz who in 1922 included a recipe for the cocktail in his book, Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails, listing the cocktail as having equal parts of Cognac, triple sec and lemon juice. In the book, MacElhone cites its inventor as Pat MacGarry, but in later publications claims himself as its inventor. Its name… Read more

There was great excitement in Bradford on Avon on Friday morning as the Tour of Britain came through our small, Wiltshire town for the first time.  Even more excitement ensued when we found that the cyclists would be racing straight past our front door with Sir Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish among them.  The Tour of Britain, which was revived in 2004, is now Britain’s biggest professional cycle race so, to celebrate its success over the last 10 years and cheer the riders on, we joined our neighbours with a toast of Hermitage 10 year old Grande Champagne Cognac –… Read more

      Ingredients: 1 lime 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 passion fruit salt & pepper 12 beautiful scallops 20ml Blanche Armagnac Make the vinaigrette by mixing the zest and juice of the lime with the olive oil and passion fruit seeds.  Season with salt and pepper. Compile 4 skewers by skewering the scallops through the thickest part.  Season with salt and pepper.  Gently cut the scallops on 2 sides crossing the incision.  Heat some olive oil in a pan until very hot then add the skewers.  Sear on both sides and flame with Blanche Armagnac. Serve hot with the passion… Read more

The other day, I was talking to a barman in a hotel and he, like so many other people, wanted to know “what is the difference between brandy and cognac?” Certainly in the trade we all assume that we know the answer to this, so was our barman an exception? I don’t think so. Brandy is a spirit distilled from a fruit, it can be any fruit, any strength and aged for six days or 60 years, there really are very few rules. Cognac on the other hand is rather more complex and allows experts to differentiate between different crus,… Read more