Brillet Tres Rare "Heritage" Grande Champagne 45% Brut de Frut

Brillet is a small family-owned grower/producer located in Grande Champagne. Their vineyard is 150 acres and the property runs into the Petite Champagne growing region. They have been around since the 1600s and that is about it. Their website says “a refreshed website is coming” and has a picture of their estate (which looks gorgeous by the way). I wonder how long the refresh has been in the works, and given the patience of cognac producers, how long are we going to have to wait?

I found the Heritage for a little over $250 online so I gathered a couple friends and we did a bottle split. A 50-year-old cognac at (or near cask strength) for $250sh – sign me up! A few commercial reviewers gave the Heritage a little love…Paul Pacult gave it 5 stars…Wine Enthusiast gave it a 96-100pts and said it smelled of marzipan and tasted like dark caramel, vanilla, butter, and cream. I love marzipan, dark caramel, vanilla, butter, and cream! What could go wrong?

So on to the review…

Nose: musty oak, salt water taffy, blackberry jam, and some faint floral notes in the background

Taste: rich and dark, the caramel is definitely there but not intense, sweet crème, fudge, candied pecans, some of that dark chocolate bitterness, and some light earthen-like qualities (think leather but I really hate saying leather cause who eats leather?)

Finish: beautifully long

Thoughts
It’s good. I might have to snag one or two for the bunker. I used a Lheraud I gave an A minus for benchmarking and comparison. I slightly preferred the palate for the Lheraud but the finish on the Brillet is fantastic…and both are great overall. With that in mind, I’ll give this an…

Grade: A minus