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Tag: whisky

Festive Flavours: 7 Spirits to Elevate Your Celebrations

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This Christmas, bring elegance and flavour to your festivities with these exceptional spirits. Whether adding depth to dishes, flair to desserts, or delighting loved ones with luxurious gifts, each bottle offers something special to celebrate the season. Here are Spirits to Elevate Your Celebrations:

1. Whisky: Mosgaard Organic Pedro Ximenez Cask Whisky

Rich and smooth, Mosgaard Organic Pedro Ximenez Cask Whisky is the perfect whisky for the festive season. With hints of dried fruits and spice from its time in PX casks, this organic whisky is an ideal addition to festive desserts like Christmas cake or a decadent whisky-infused bread pudding. As a gift, its organic certification and unique ageing process make it a standout for whisky aficionados.

2. Liqueur: Nusbaumer Crème de Framboise des Bois

A liqueur brimming with the vibrant flavour of wild raspberries, Nusbaumer Crème de Framboise des Bois is perfect for festive cocktails and desserts. Add a splash to Prosecco for a seasonal twist or drizzle it over ice cream and pavlovas. Its beautiful bottle and luxurious taste make it an elegant gift for those who appreciate fruity and refined liqueurs.

3. Cognac: Hermitage 30 Year Old Grande Champagne Cognac

Aged to perfection, Hermitage 30 Year Old Grande Champagne Cognac delivers a luxurious, smooth profile with deep, complex flavours of spice and oak. This remarkable Cognac is perfect for savouring after a festive meal or using to elevate indulgent dishes like sauces or even Christmas pudding. With its refined character and exceptional quality, it makes a magnificent gift for Cognac enthusiasts or those who appreciate the finer things in life.

4. Calvados: Toutain Reserve 3 Year Old Calvados

Bursting with the crisp, fresh flavours of apples, Toutain Reserve 3 Year Old Calvados brings festive cheer to both sweet and savoury dishes. Use it to create caramelised apple desserts or add a splash to pork marinades. Affordable yet full of character, this Calvados is also a delightful gift for anyone who loves fine spirits with a fruity twist.

5. Armagnac: Castarède Vintage 1994 Bas Armagnac

Aged to perfection, Castarède Vintage 1994 Bas Armagnac is a beautifully complex spirit with notes of nuts and dried fruits. Perfect for pairing with Christmas puddings or chocolate desserts, it’s a warming treat to enjoy by the fire. As a vintage Armagnac, it also makes an excellent gift for collectors or those who appreciate rare, high-quality spirits.

6. Grappa: Montanaro Grappa di Arneis

Made from the aromatic Arneis grape, Montanaro Grappa di Arneis is a wonderfully versatile spirit. Serve it neat as a digestif after festive meals or use it to enhance Italian-inspired desserts like tiramisu. Its clean, refined flavour and artisanal production make it a thoughtful and unique gift for spirit lovers.

7. Pineau: Château de Beaulon Pineau des Charentes White 2000

A blend of Cognac and grape juice, Château de Beaulon Pineau des Charentes White 2000 is a luxurious treat for the festive season. Its delicate sweetness makes it perfect for aperitifs or as a companion to cheese boards and pâtés. Its vintage status and elegant packaging make it a remarkable gift for anyone with a taste for unique and refined spirits.

Luxury Spirits for Festive Celebrations

Whether you’re crafting exquisite dishes, hosting holiday toasts, or selecting gifts that impress, these seven spirits bring quality, versatility, and festive cheer to your celebrations.

🎁 Shop now and make this Christmas one to remember!

Fall Favorites: Get 15% Off Autumn Drinks & Gifts!

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As the crisp autumn air settles in, it’s the perfect time to enjoy something warming and exceptional. We are delighted to offer 15% off on three of our finest spirits throughout October. These hand-picked selections make for exquisite seasonal drinks and thoughtful gifts, ideal for embracing the spirit of autumn.

1. Hermitage 30 Year Old Grande Champagne Cognac
This extraordinary cognac, aged for 30 years, boasts elegant notes of oak, dried apricots, and a rich, nutty finish. With its refined balance and depth, it’s a true connoisseur’s drink—perfect for special autumn celebrations or as a luxurious gift for someone who appreciates the finest things in life.

2. Mosgaard Organic Pedro Ximenez Cask Whisky
Matured in Pedro Ximenez casks, this organic whisky offers deep, rich layers of dried fruit, warm spices, and a touch of sweetness. Its complex yet smooth character makes it a fantastic choice to sip by the fire on a cool evening or to share with friends over hearty autumn meals.

3. Delord 15 Year Old Bas Armagnac
This beautifully aged Bas Armagnac delivers bold, earthy flavours of prunes, vanilla, and spices, making it an ideal autumn indulgence. Whether enjoyed neat after dinner or given as a thoughtful present, it’s sure to be a seasonal favourite.

Take advantage of this October discount and enjoy these quintessential autumn drinks. Cheers to a season of rich flavours and fine spirits!

World Whisky Day

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As World Whisky Day approaches on May 18th, our focus turns to Mosgaard Distillery, nestled on the southeastern coastline of the Island of Funen. Founded in 2015 by Gitte and Jes Mosgaard, this distillery is a testament to craftsmanship, sustainability, and the pursuit of flavor.

World Whisky Day

Mosgaard prides itself on crafting exceptional organic whiskys, each a reflection of the pure surroundings and rich traditions of Danish distillation. From the organic Danish Barley Malt to the pure, mineral rich water drawn from beneath the distillery, every aspect of production is meticulously curated for quality and taste.

With a commitment to sustainability at its core, Mosgaard operates with CO2-neutral energy sources and a zero waste ethos, repurposing all remnants from primary production as animal feed. This dedication to environmental stewardship ensures that each sip of Mosgaard Organic Whisky is as pure and flavourful as can be.

Utilising small 50 liter casks, Mosgaard Organic Whisky matures rapidly while preserving its rich, intense, fruity notes.

To prepare for World Whisky Day, we’re highlighting the Mosgaard Organic Whisky range we have for sale on Brandyclassics:

🌟 Mosgaard Organic Oloroso Cask Whisky: A harmonious blend of rich, dark malty flavours and the subtle sweetness of Oloroso sherry.

🌟 Mosgaard Organic Pedro Ximenez Cask Whisky: Indulge in the decadent notes of Pedro Ximenez sherry, beautifully integrated with the smooth complexity of organic whisky. (Grab 15% off this Whisky in the month of May).

🌟 Mosgaard Organic Port Wine Cask Whisky: Experience a perfect balance of sweetness and depth, achieved through careful ageing in select port wine casks.

Cheers to World Whisky Day! 🥃🌎✨

New Mosgaard Whisky – Palo Cortado Cask

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Palo CortadoWe have a new whisky on our shelves – Mosgaard Organic Single Malt Palo Cortado Cask Whisky has just been released.  It has been finished in casks built from American white oak, which had been medium toasted, and put into stock with Palo Cortado sherry for 1.5 years (Palo Cortado is a sherry with the nose of Amontillado and the body from Oloroso). Mosgaard Palo Cortado whisky is bottled at a strength of 53% which balances the spicy malt and green citrus notes – delicious.

Mosgaard distillery was established in 2015 by Gitte and Jes Mosgaard. The distillery is located at an old farm on the southeastern coastline of the Island of Funen – the “fruit orchard” of Denmark. All products from the distillery are organic – this ensures a clean and crisp taste. The production is with CO2-neutral energy sources and zero-waste where all the remains from the primary production are reused as animal food. The organic Danish Barley Malt gives a rich and dark malty taste.whilst being a cleaner and purer spirit. The Water below the distillery is pure, hard, and full of minerals and the old saying still applies: hard water makes soft whisky. The stills are handmade in Portugal by gifted craftsmen – one hammer stroke at a time and the casks are built from carefully selected oak. Primary production is in small 50 litre casks, so the whisky matures fast and keeps the rich, intense, fruity notes intact.

Christmas Stock and Delivery Times

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ChristmasThis year we have expanded our online offering to include more spirits and liqueurs than ever before.  So, in addition to our award-winning cognacs, armagnacs and calvados, we now have organic whiskies and gins, liqueurs and grappas, eaux de vie and vermouths.  Do take a look at our website, we really do have Christmas gifts for everyone!

For Christmas deliveries to addresses in the UK please ensure your orders are with us by

12 noon on Wednesday 22nd December 2021

Generally, UK orders placed before 12 noon will be delivered the following working day but please be aware that although we are able to process orders within 1 working day, Parcelforce are not always able to meet their normal delivery times at present.   Our deliveries to America are also taking longer than usual due to a shortage of flights so all orders to the rest of the world should be placed as soon as possible please.

Whisky Collectors Enticed By Luxury Cognac

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whiskyThe Spirits Business has once again been looking at the astronomical prices of aged whisky compared to cognac and their research tells them that the Collectors market is looking further afield.  Jonny Fowle of Sotheby’s commented “… it does seem like there is room for vintage, aged spirits like Cognac to find favour with people who are maybe unhappy with the price of Scotch whisky.”

“Interest in Cognac is definitely growing,” says Isabel Graham-Yooll, auction director at Whisky.Auction. “In the secondary market and the auction market, people are becoming more educated.”

In the Ultra-Premium Segment, there is much innovation being carried out at the top end of the cognac market, says David Baker, managing director of Hermitage Cognacs.  He believes sprits produced by masters of their craft in creative ways can become some of the best examples available in the category.

“We’ve got an 1885 at the moment, and that is probably the finest Cognac I’ve ever tasted, it is just out of this world,” he says.  Read the full article here:

How luxury Cognac is attracting whisky collectors – The Spirits Business

The Bottle Story – Frapin 750 How Much?

Posted in Brandy Bottle Reviews, The Bottle Story and tagged , , , , , , ,

FrapinFrapin has just released a limited edition run of this unique presentation to celebrate 750 years since the family’s oldest member was born in Cognac in 1270.  We do applaud these small family firms who have passed on their skills from generation to generation and not taken the easy route of selling to the ‘big four’.  The Frapin 750 contains some very old Grande Champagne eau de vie, albeit blended, and is presented in a Baccarat crystal carafe decorated with Belle Epoch-like grapevine etchings.  Just 21 of these presentations have been produced – to represent the 21 generations of the Frapin family – now that really is history in a bottle.  It oozes quality and style but so does the price tag.  One of these will set you back an astounding £43,956.  That’s equivalent to 25 of our Hermitage Marie Louise Cognacs in crystal decanters!

Hefty price tags like this are, however, quite common-place in the world of whisky.  Two recent releases demonstrate that, even without 750 years of family firm history, large sums of money can be charged.  Glengoyne and Glenfarcas have just released limited-edition whiskies, in engraved crystal decanters and luxury presentation boxes.  The Glengoyne 50 yo single malt costs £22,500 and the Glenfarcas 60 yo single cask, £19,500.  Compare these prices to equivalent cognacs (Hermitage 50 yo @ £400 and Hermitage 60 yo @ £530) and it is difficult to see where they come from.  Market forces must play their part but demand for old cognacs is on the rise so perhaps soon, their prices will too.

Single Cask Cognac – Whyever Not?

Posted / in Brandy Education, How to make Cognac, News and tagged , , , , ,

single caskSingle Cask is a term well known in the whisky industry, it certainly gives a product increased status and price but why is that?  The phrase Single Cask suggests a unique glimpse into a particular set of circumstances that has given rise to a one-off personality. The whisky may be from a certain year where the distillery was using a particular mashing regime, yeast strain or set of stills. It may have been stored in a warehouse that is known to provide certain conditions. The barrel itself is unique as no two trees are identical and coopers’ techniques differ, so the flavours that develop will be only found in that cask. Every distillery has its official range of bottlings which are created to please as many people as possible, but a Single Cask captures the stage before the identity is lost in the blend.  For distillery fans, this takes their experience a step further.  Rarity imparts value and so a Single Cask will be highly sought after.

Many of these special characteristics can also be found in cognac production.  Every year the very best cognacs are selected for long-term ageing, rather than joining the thousands of others destined to be blended.  The cellarmasters’ skills are paramount in bringing these chosen nectars to optimum maturity and many variations to the ageing process maybe employed.  So why are these cognac vintages or age statements not designated as Single Cask?  Perhaps the answer lies in the finer detail.

Amazingly, an industry-wide definition of Single Cask does not exist, but The Scottish Whisky Association (SWA) is clear on the rules that it enforces.  They feel that to be classed as Single Cask, the spirit must remain in the same barrel from the moment the spirit is filled until the moment it is bottled, without any revatting or finishing.  Therefore “a sherry finished single cask whisky” is not acceptable but a “single cask whisky finished in a sherry butt” is.  It is accepted however, that all whiskies will move from one barrel to another in the early stages of maturation, it is what happens next that is important.

The process of moving from new to old wood in the initial stage also applies to cognac so, when a vintage is kept in the same old oak barrel throughout its maturation, it will be Single Cask.  A problem arises though when there are multiple barrels of the same vintage which may be mixed for bottling.  Unlike in the whisky industry, barrel numbering is not common.  Cognacs can also be moved to different barrels during the ageing process.  The cellarmaster seeks to guide the spirit’s maturation path by using newer and older oak barrels at different stages.  This can really benefit the final quality and flavour of the cognac so is deemed to be more important than any benefits derived from being Single Cask.  The rules of cognac production are strict; it may not be put into barrels that have held other types of spirit, but it may be put into previously used cognac barrels.  The BNIC’s definition of Single Cask is a cognac that has always been stored in the same barrel so, the phrase could indeed be used to describe a particular barrel of cognac, but not as often as you might expect.

Calvados & Whisky – An Unusual Blend

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Calvados & WhiskyScottish whisky blender, Compass Box, has released a new spirit drink comprising calvados & whisky.  The calvados, from the Christian Drouin distillery, has been blended with whiskies aged in French oak casks and Sherry butts. Compass Box’s founder said “We have been blending calvados and Scotch whisky at home for years, enchanted by their complementary qualities.  Although one of the world’s greatest spirits, calvados is also one of the most underappreciated”.  The result is said to possess ‘layers of apple character married beautifully with malty, vanilla and spice-like notes’.  Compass Box is not the only firm to recognise the success of this flavour combination, though.  Sweden’s Mackmyra distillery has just released a single malt whisky, finished in ex-calvados casks.  Perhaps such ideas will help calvados get the appreciation it so deserves?