L’Encantada Lous Mouracs 1979 Armagnac 50.6%

L’Encantada Lous Mouracs 1979 Armagnac 50.6%

This review is the result of free samples…FREE SAMPLES! To quote Steve Martin in The Jerk, “I’m somebody now.” Well, probably not, but its always cool to receive free stuff (what American doesn’t love Costco for that exact reason). I swear I’m not going to let that bias my opinion, however.

A few quick tidbits of info before the review. One, this spirit is insanely dark…probably one of the darkest spirits I’ve had (similar to the old Velier rums). Two, the importer / distro (PM Spirits) notes are posted below.

With that out of the way, to the opinions!

Justin’s notes:
N: nutty and sweet, some metallic notes show up with some blood orange citrus, too
P: walnuts, walnuts, and more walnuts...but not just the nuts, you get the bitter walnut skin...carob, ruby red grapefruit rind...beyond that oak, cigar box (like when you can taste smells), and a little raisiny sweetness
F: long, creamy...delicious

Justin’s grade: A. Easy A. Easy easy easy A. I Love it and glad I bought 3. History will remember this era of brandy as the golden era and this bottling is just another example of such. I hope they keep coming but I know they won’t, and I smile a little knowing people spend $1,000 plus on scotch / bourbon (cough cough Pappy cough) while I spend half that on multiples of bottles like this. Justified smugness I guess.

Ryan’s Notes:
Nose:  Big cherry notes, walnuts, exotic woods. Lots of what I’d call sugary oak (as opposed to drying oak).

Taste:  Sugary plums, currants, cherry jolly ranchers.  Thick brown sugar. There’s a medicinal sweetness. Manuka honey. Toasted walnut oil.  Adding to the medicinal profile are those awesome lacquer notes you get with the right kind of cask aging. We’re still swimming in oaky sugars, but it’s never drying.  The balance here is excellent  A long finish on tobacco leaves and medicinal cherry that just sticks around for days.

My wife nosed and tasted this one and looked at me and said “you must love this”. She’s right, I do.


PM Spirits Shelf Talker
“Lous Mouracs was a tiny estate in Tenareze, near the village of Larroque-sur-l'Osse. The vines that grew the grapes used to produce this spirit were torn up years ago, and the owner has since retired. On the 10 hectares of land, Ugni Blanc was the primary grape grown, with a small amount of Baco as well. The estate had two cellars – one very dry, one humid.
This single cask aged in the dry cellar, helping the spirit to develop nutty, balsamic-like characteristics. Additionally, this Armagnac spent all 39 years of aging in new, Gascon oak.”

Domaine du Manoir de Montreuil, Pays d'Auge Calvados

Ryan's Notes

We're switching gears and going to Calvados now and we're looking at a 1999 and 1984 vintage selection from Domaine du Manoir de Montreuil.  There's not a lot I can dig up on this producer.  They have very little internet presence beyond what I can find through their importer, Charles Neal.  The highlights: Run by the Giard family and located in the Pays d'Auge appellation of Calvados this is a family run outfit handed down from father to son. Farming on 30 hectares of red and green apple orchards with what sounds like a preference towards traditional and natural methods of farming and heritage varieties of apples.

If you'd like to learn more you can go to Charles Neal's website for further reading: http://www.charlesnealselections.com/domaine-du-manoir-de-montreuil.html

What follows are tasting notes on two vintage cask selections, a 1999 and 1984.



1999, 42%

Nose: Primarily of overripe apples and dark caramel.  Confectionery fudge-like richness. Some oak influence comes through. A little musty. Black pepper.

Taste:  Mulled cider. Candied apples, cherries. Rich caramel and toffee. Vanilla.  Slightly tangy towards the finish and light hints of oak. The finish tapers off fairly quickly.


This is very good.  It's heavy handed on the sugars, although it never gets sickly sweet.  All the fruits and candies play nicely.  The profile is immaculate, actually, and if I had to introduce somebody to calvados, this wouldn't be a bad choice.  But, still, the profile leaves me wanting a bit more.  It's possible the lower proof is at play here as I believe they did reduce this cask down to 42% over the years.

B

Available at Astor Wines for $150.




1984, 50%

Nose: There's no mistaking the apple DNA here as the initial aroma is of spiced apple sauce. There are berries, too. Mainly raspberries.  These fruits give way to darker sugars and loads of baking spices. Clove, coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, all swimming in a base of oaky caramel.

Taste:   Like the nose it's all sweet fruits up front.  Baked apples and pears.  Cream.  Caramel. Spiced apple butter. Cinnamon, cloves.  Where it departs from the nose is these cooked fruit sugars give way to a medicinal sweetness.  Acetone notes of lacquer, spicy tannins, hints of tobacco, charred wood.  These heavier flavors play well with the orchard fruits through the mid-palate and linger well into a long finish.

This aged well, and while undeniably apple-y, offers a nice complexity beyond its more youthful sibling.  Not to get caught up on proof, but I do think the 50% is a better fit for this spirit.  I split this bottle with a friend, and I kept coming back to it. In fact, I found myself placing it just slightly out of sight to make it last a little longer.

A-


This was originally available through Astor Wines for around $215, but is now out of stock.  Let's hope Charles Neal brings us more vintage releases from this producer in the future. 

Lheraud 1973 for "Legacy Brandy", 48%

Ryan's Notes

 

When I visited France last summer I promised Justin we'd check out Lheraud.  How could I not? It was one of our gateway cognacs... I'm thinking specifically of a 1966 Fins Bois and a 1974 Grande Champagne.  Two cognacs that I think would make a believer out of anybody.  Their vintage selections might be where the glory is, but we shouldn't forget their less expensive but still impressive Charles VII.  Lheraud also puts more attention to detail and aesthetics then any other producer I'm familiar with, and there's certainly a sense of grandeur to their whole presentation, especially with the vintage selections.  Usually this would be a turn off to me, however my experience in drinking Lheraud cognac is that the quality of the vessel is often a reflection of the cognac inside it. This is maybe that rare case where the whole package is a welcome part of the experience, from the giant box, to the hand written letter, to the gorgeous bottle, to the excellent cognac inside of it - and I have to admit, I've become a sucker for it.  With a visit to Lheraud on the books, I was curious at what to expect and I think what we encountered was perhaps partially what I was anticipating.  From their pristine grounds to the immaculate cellars I almost felt like I was walking through a stage set for a cognac house rather than one that is actually functioning.  It wasn't until after the tour was over that I realized we never even saw a still.  That raised the question to me of whether or not they do actually produce their own cognac, although Justin and I have since found some photo evidence to suggest that they do distill.  The tour was unlike any others that I experience on that trip, mainly because it felt like we were being shown the "bottle" instead of the "cognac".  At any rate, we finally sat down for a tasting through their core range.  It was at this point that I suggested the idea to our tour guide that perhaps a group of us enthusiasts here in the states might select a cask to have bottle especially for us.  There was excitement at the idea and I was sent home with a few vintage samples.  Two of them were fantastic, and one of them was a clear stand out, a 1973 Grande Champagne.  We've since had a portion of this cask bottled for Legacy Brandy at 46 years of age and 48% abv. Tasting notes are below.

Pristine cellars full of very old cognac dating back to the 1800s

Pristine cellars full of very old cognac dating back to the 1800s

calligraphy station for handwritten notes inside each box

Lheraud
1973 Grande Champagne
Bottled for "Legacy Brandy" on Feb 24, 2020
48%

Nose: Honey, raspberries, pecans, fresh citrus, tobacco leaves.

Taste: Immediate fruit sweetness with a thick honey viscousness that fully coats the tongue. Mixed berry jam - blueberry, strawberry, raspberry. Ripe apples dipped in honey.  Candied orange.  An almost cotton candy like sweetness.  Transitions towards wood varnish, tobacco, cedar, white pepper, szechuan.  There's a second wave of fruit - more towards tropical - passion fruit.

Some spirits take time to unfold their flavors and leave an impression, but this cognac makes its mark immediately with punchy rich fruit sugars and a mouthfeel that coats the tongue and sits heavy for its 48%.  The influences of the oak are prominent but not even close to overbearing. We're at 46 years of age at the time of bottling, but I'm fairly certain that the sample we tasted to choose this cask was a bit younger.  I've got to wonder how much longer this could have gone in the oak. It seems like it could've taken on another 20 years.  On the other hand, it's rather perfect just how it is now. 

1987 Laterrade "La Chaou" 49.5%

Ryan's notes

This release was sold through K&L and comes from the negociant, Fitte et Laterrade. The armagnac inside the bottle was produced by the owner of a small vineyard who decided to put down some casks of his own product.  We get the sense through K&L's own description that this was not an ongoing project, but something that was only done over a couple of harvests.  Fitte et Laterrade acquired two casks, one from 1987 and the other 1988, and the brandy inside is said to have been aged in entirely new oak and was "undisturbed" in its aging. It's unclear exactly what that means and if or if not anything was ever added to the aged eaux-de-vie before bottling.  It's also worth mentioning that new oak armagnac, especially those coming from Lous Pibous and Le Freche, has a bit of a cult following in certain circles within the US and I think that is in part due to its abundance of bold sweet flavors and large mouthfeel. It represents something loved and missed dearly in American whiskey, and that if was to be sought out as bourbon, would cost, at this point in time, likely 3-4x as much and would fly off the shelves in minutes.  Ironically, here we have a product produced from a single harvest of grapes in very small quantities and aged over 30 years, and we are able to not only taste, but purchase these spirits at reasonable prices.  Below we're tasting the 1987 vintage.

1987 Fitte et Laterrade "La Chaou"
31 years old
49.5%

Nose: Pine, toasted walnuts, maple, lacquer. Definitely a heavier, more "rustic" style nose without a ton of sweetness.

Taste:  Caramelized brown sugar, cherry cough syrup, hazelnut, red twizzlers. Again, following the theme of the nose, lots of dark rustic flavors - leather, raw bitter chocolate, roasted almonds, gentian. An array of bitters, but not drying and balanced nicely by the sugars.  Some musty oak and light touches of spice in the finish.

Something about this one just keeps me wanting to go back for more. Rich, dark, sweet, a complex finish, and a great mouthfeel.  Justin surprised me with a large sample of this one, and it's found its way into my glass with some regularity since I first had a taste. This hits some awesome complexity with those medicinal bitter notes on the finish that reminds me of some of those uber-aged cognacs we've talked about here on the blog.  Bitter is not usually a flavor that we gravitate towards here in the US, but it's one that I feel plays really nicely with the fruit sugars and often takes a good brandy to that next level. 

In my opinion, this is unlike some of the other much sought after armagnacs aged in new oak.  It's not in the ballpark of a bourbon profile.  Instead we have a bold, dark and brooding armagnac here that, for my tastes, is one that settles very nicely into my brandy-centric wheelhouse.

A-


No longer in stock, but was originally made available through K&L for $140

Paul Giraud "Tres Rare" 40%

Ryan's Notes

When we arrived in Cognac our first house visit was to Paul Giraud.  I was previously unfamiliar with Paul-Jean's cognac, and it was with Amy Pasquet's guidance that we took a visit to what I learned is actually the best selling cognac label in Japan. The grapes for their cognac are grown solely in the Grande Champagne region on 35 hectares of land and the Giraud domaine is located in Bouteville.  Paul Giraud is one of the bigger names in the Cognac region, despite being a relatively small producer. Furthermore, they've been in the game for awhile, since the 1600s.  A family tradition passed down from father to son, the current owner Paul-Jean Giraud has been leading the ship since 1976.  He doesn’t add additives and claims to not add water through the aging process. To his younger cognacs he will dilute down before bottling to 40%, but states that by the time his cognac aging in his humid cellars has reached 25 years of age they have already naturally reduced down to 40%.  (This last point definitely raises some questions based on some of the much higher proofs we commonly see with cask strength releases of similar ages from other cognac houses.)  We tasted through a flight of his cognac releases.  High quality all around, but I was particularly impressed by a 1999 vintage release and his Tres Rare (40 year old blend of late 60s cognac).  Tasting notes can be found below for the Tres Rare.

Water from a natural spring being routed through one of the cellars to increase humidity for increased alcohol evaporation.

 

 

***Tasting Notes***

 

Paul Giraud "Tres Rare"
40%


40 year blend of Grande Champagne eaux-de-vie

Nose: Very well rounded nose - Honey, apples, pears, persimmon, walnuts, sweet tobacco, cedar

Taste: Lush and sweet with tons of dried fruits. Plums, peaches, persimmon, figs.  Following there is cinnamon oil, cedar and grapefruit peel. Lingering with the spices is sugared grapefruit.

It's a touch light in body, but it has an excellent mouthfeel and is rich in flavor.  I find it to be pretty immaculate on the palate.   A cognac for cognac drinkers.

A-


(The Tres Rare can be found stateside at Astor Wines for $230)

A visit to Pasquet and a spread of cognac

Ryan's Notes


Let's continue on our trip through France. So far we've had a trip to Navarre and dinner with the owners of Bertrand. There are some other cognac houses we visited that we will talk about at some point, but at the heart of this visit to Cognac was our stay with Amy and Jean Pasquet.  They were our hosts, our translators, our navigators, and our tour guide all in one.  Aside from the pleasure of spending time with them and their family, we did tour their property and cellar.

Things I learned:

• The Pasquets are growing their grapes using entirely organic methods, trying to do their part to be environmentally conscious in an area riddled with pesticide use.  
• Jean's father still assists in distillation each season.
• There will be a 100% Folle Blanche Pasquet produced release in the future, which really highlights the difference in flavor profile from an Ugni Blanc cognac.
• Having had the opportunity to taste several different eaux-de-vie side-by-side, two of which were from the very same grape harvest, it is amazing just how much of a skill and art it is to produce a quality distillate and how different the eaux-de-vie tastes in a side-by-side tasting.  
• Transparency is important to the Pasquets. On each bottle label there is a code. At the most left is LXX which designates the year of distillation and this is followed by a date on the right which signifies when it was bottled.
• You can pretty much count the amount of producers in the region that don't have contracts with one of the three big labels on two hands. Pasquet is one of them. 
• Amy and Jean's relationship building, exposure for small producers, and work as non-contracted growers is important work for the integrity and future of cognac. 

The most memorable moment of the entire trip? It might be in the photo below. I think it was at this moment where Jean was pouring some of their Tres Vielle Reserve from their 3rd and final cask to be bottled. It struck home to me just how lucky and fortunate we were to be drinking any cognac, let alone one passed down from the previous generation that was so old its actual age is unknown.  A spirit that depends on the success of so many variables from quality oak casks, to methodical distilling methods, to the most important of all, a good harvest.  It struck home how it all comes back to the grapes.  While tasting through the Pasquet's core range I asked Amy if there were plans to set casks aside for older stock and to start expanding past the 10 year range (a very good youthful and fresh cognac, by the way).  I am going to paraphrase here, but the answer was very plan and simple: No, they can't.  They produce from what they grow and there just isn't enough to expand beyond the demand of the current lineup (the upside to this is the motivation for the L'esprit de Famille label and traveling to private cellars to find the hidden gems that would otherwise end up in a Hennesy or Martell blend).  Another point to take away is that there is a distillation season. Brandy isn't like the whiskey world where distillation goes on pretty much year round, pumping out hundreds of thousands of barrels worth of commodity crop distillate.  In the brandy world, eaux-de-vie distillation is only as productive as the harvest that precedes it.  So yea, this stuff is special.

Pasquet vines

Tasting Notes

I'm going to go through some notes on a handful of releases here. The majority of these are cognacs coming from different small producers throughout the region that have been uncovered by Amy and Jean and released through the Pasquet label.  Again, we're fortunate to have transparency here. The L'esprit de Famille line, if it is news to you, is all about transparency and sharing the stories of small cognac producers and how these unique spirits ended up in our bottle.  We'll finish with the most recent Tres Vielle Reserve. The last remaining cask of "old" Pasquet produced cognac.  A real treat.

L'Esprit de Famille "Le Cognac de Bernadette" 
44.8%

1974 vintage

Nose: Peach and strawberry, caramel, sweet bubble gum

Taste: Strawberry, cream, honey, and then slightly medicinal - cherry halls lozenges.
Finish: is a bit farmhousy, a bit musty, a bit medicinal.

I find this one to be different and interesting in a great way. Not just interesting, though. Also very good.

B+

 L'Esprit de Famille "Le Cognac de Jean" 
49.6%

"a blend of 1969 and 1977 eau-de-vie from Jean Biais"

Nose: A relatively light nose. menthol, floral notes, citrus - tangerine, a denser sweetness - buckwheat honey
Taste: Grapey, obvious - but there it is. Milk chocolate. Honey. Berries. Citrus Zest. Syrupy mouthfeel.
Finish: Slightly mushroomy, musty. Like walking through an old dank cellar. Syrupy cherry notes. There is some bite on the back of the tongue as the oak comes through.

A cognac with heavy flavors that almost brings you to the dark cellar I imagine it rested in for so many years. Justin mentioned it as rustic to me, and that resonates. Another one that falls in the interesting category. It's a counterpart to the freshness that we sometimes get with cognacs of this age.

B+

"Jean" 1995 / cask selection for T5C and friends
50.3%

A younger cognac from the same producer, Jean Biais. This was a cask that Justin, myself, and a few others selected and at the time of tasting there was one note that stood out to me - chocolate. 

1995

Nose:  caramel, nuts - peanuts, pecans, spiced chocolate,
Taste:  Chocolate pudding, figs, raisins. Caramel.   In the finish we have Mexican melting chocolate, cinnamon sugar.  Some more sweetness from those figs.

This is a rich candy bar cognac.  Buckets of chocolate. No sharp edges to this one.  It has a soft and lush mouthfeel and dark sugars that make you wonder whether to keep drinking it from the glass or just to pour it over a bowl of vanilla ice cream. 

No grade

1973 L'esprit de Famille "Le Cognac de Andrè"  / cask selection for Aficionados   
50.3%

A cognac that when bought was originally resting in a large format cask. Upon purchase was split into two smaller casks. The first of which is being bottled for the upcoming L'esprit de Famille release. A portion of the other cask went to the online spirit group "Aficionados". 

Nose: Dense and deep oak aroma.  Some chocolate  and caramel. Figs. Earthier notes of leather.
Taste: Just as dense as the nose suggest. Dark fruit sugars up front. Cherry, figs. Followed by passion fruit. Some chocolate sauce in here, too. Followed by warming spices - ginger, white pepper, and I swear a slight hint of chipotle.
Finish. A strong transition from sweet to umami. A slight funk, musty oak. Slightly overripe fruit. This is all good, though.  It works.

This is big cognac. Far from typical with plenty of depth and layers of flavors. Both sweet and savory represented here. Well done all around.

A-

1992 cask selection for Aficionados
61.4%

All I know about this particular cask is that it comes from a small producer whose last name is Brisson and has cellars in both Petite Champagne and Fins Bois.  This particular release comes from Petite Champagne.


Nose: Standard dark fruits - plums and raisins, brown sugar and pungent oak

Taste: Very heavy on the brown sugar. Chocolate covered fruits - raisins, currants, plums.  A nice tartness there.  Towards the finish there is some slightly rough oak spice.  Also some light notes of wood polish and bitter walnut.  There's a sharpness on the finish that lingers with all of that brown sugar.

This is downright sugary and there's also a certain roughness to it that almost makes me think of cask strength bourbon.  It's easy for me to see how this will be a hit with some. I don't find it very complex, but it's an enjoyable cognac that leans more towards the heavy sugars. 

B

Tres Vielle Reserve (#3 / 2019)
44%

From Amy - "the TVR is age unknown cognac (found by JLP in 1970 marked as “tres Vieux cognac” or very old Cognac) and 1972 and 1974. "

Nose: It is amazing how a cognac so old can smell so fresh. We have lots of tropical fruits here.  Mango, kiwi, passionfruit.  Candied citrus peel.  Cherries.  Fragrant oak.
Taste: This is immediately juicy. Tart citrus - navel and blood orange. Also mango and kiwi. Mouthfeel is slightly syrupy coating the tongue with these fresh fruits. Towards the finish there is some lightly drying oak. Crystallized ginger.  Citrus peel.
Finish: A long finish.

A stunningly fruity, age defying and knockout cognac.

A
 

New Blogger - Patrick

To expand the blog, keep things moving, and add more diversity to the reviews, Patrick will be joining us on this site. He is Kentucky boy with bourbon roots that has recognized that promise with Cognac (and brandy in general). He's also got a decent palate and good taste in Scotch!

We look forward to his brandy reviews!