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Cognac Masters 2012 – Master Award
This exceptionally rare and sought after cognac was found in an old cellar to the north of Cognac. We were lucky in obtaining a complete bonbonne for bottling. Just don’t hang about, this is not going to last.
“My most prized bottle is a 1914 Cognac Hermitage Borderies which has an incredible spectrum of flavours, from toffee to walnuts.” Olly Smith, Journalist & TV Presenter
Visiting France again last week to locate more vintage cognacs, we were delighted to have found a number of exceptionally fine brandies. Top of our list is a seventy year old cognac from the region around Juillac la Coq. There is not a large quantity, some sixty litres in all, but it is exceptionally rare and we expect to be able to obtain at least half of it, which we are hoping to be sold as a special presentation.
We have also identified a fabulous 2002 vintage with an aroma and flavour of clover honey. This cognac is at over 60% and will have to be brought down, but we still feel that despite having to wait over a year for it to come down to around 50% alc it is worth waiting for. Indeed we will probably have to bring it down more to around 45-47% for it to be at its best.
Another cognac which requires some modest dilution is a very rare 1914 Borderies Cognac – this has a wonderful old toffee and roast walnut aroma and taste, it should be ready in about three months for drinking and will be a winner. We have one bonbonne of it at present but there are two more, so here’s hoping!
We have recently sold our last bottle of 1900 and were also pleased to obtain a further bonbonne from around Cognac. It is at 44.3% but we feel that this is about the right strength for the brandy and is available now.
During a visit to Cognac last week we have been lucky enough to find two old bonbonnes of rare cognac. Each bonbonne holds the equivalent of about 42 bottles and some will be decanted into bottles next month.
The first container is a rare 1900 cognac which we have found with the help of one of our suppliers; it has an extremely traditional Grande Champagne style and taste and is ready for bottling now.
The second comes from the area now known as Borderies and is a 1914 vintage. This is the third cru of Cognac and is famous for producing extremely nutty and toffee style cognacs, this being very typical of the cru. This cognac requires a small level of stabilisation and should be ready for bottling in about 3 months time. The Hermitage 1914 Borderies, Vieux Quartiers will soon be available to buy online through our website, so watch out!
Brandyclassics constantly seek out the highest quality rare vintage cognacs for our discerning customers. Hermitage Cognacs, available exclusively from Brandyclassics, are pure cognacs made without the need for sugar or caramel additives common in mass market blended cognacs. Very specific distillation qualities and long, careful ageing in oak casks are what creates our award winning cognacs…
The house of A.E. Dor was created In 1858 by Amédée Edourard Dor, a collector of fine old cognacs mainly from the Grande Champagne area. The cognacs were bought in their casks and aged in Dors cellars until they were deemed ready for drinking and then stored in large bonbonnes, where their quality remained intact.
The house is situated in Jarnac, about 13 km east of Cognac. They have recently moved into a new purpose built warehouse, but they still retain their old Paradis in the town where some of the finest of their cognacs are stored. The Paradis is probably one of the best know pictures in the Charente and its wrought iron gates protect many demi-johns of fine old cognacs. Probably their most venerable cognac is the 1805 (which they refuse to sell), but one of the nicest is the 1840 which still retains much richness and flavour even though it is only 37% by volume.
There have been a number of names associated with the firm including the brother of the ex President of France, François Mitterand, a cognac lover and purveyor of the spirit. The house survives on it’s range of blended cognacs and is today owned by Jacques Riviere, a fervent believer of blending who took over the running of the firm from his wife, Odile. She was sadly killed in a motor accident in the early 1990s and was regarded as one of the finest blenders in the industry. Unfortunately since then some of the blending has not been the same quality as those of the pre Odile days, but some of the older A.E. Dor cognacs, namely the Hors d’Age No 9 and the remaining pre-phylloxera vintages still remain in the original condition, as well as a remarkably good VSOP, an 8 year old cognac with remarkable freshness. Jacques Riviere is still the firms president but much is now done by his son.
Brandyclassics have carefully selected a number of A.E. Dor’s superior vintage cognacs for sale on our online store.
We were lucky in finding this cognac. It was in a 30 litre bonbonne and had been stored in an old cellar for many years. It is an exceedingly fine cognac from the period but regrettably the house no longer exists so this will be the last of this vintage from this house.