Cognac Famille Cabanne Lot 19.10 - The Whisky Jury

Friends, here is a 1910 straight from the cask, hence a cognac of at least 112 years of age. Frankly, and I promise I'm going to calm down, I'm ashamed to know that for the price of this distilled splendour made before the first World War (€850), you can only buy two or three bottles of a Speyside NAS whose story would make even the most depressed Belarusian art student or an old French actress who's no longer offered roles, laugh out loud. Meh. Colour: mahogany with coppery highlights. Nose: we are plunged into another dimension, space-time has become elastic, we can almost hear the clatter of arms, and we smell cordite, mud, then peony, blood oranges, sour cherries, pinot noir, morels and horns of plenty, wood, old ham hung in the attic, truffle and foie gras sauce, tomato... It's a truly transcendental experience. Mouth: enough to make you believe in miracles. It's even a bit brutal, rough, perhaps a bit too young, to be honest. And I'm not even joking. As for the flavours and molecules, after noting a commendable fullness and an absence of fatigue, I would list the following, in no particular order: milk chocolate, dark chocolate, Cuban tobacco, aubergine and artichoke, raspberry and blackcurrant liqueur, old Burgundy from the Côte de Nuits, Italian coffee, ground black pepper, cardamom, real truffle oil (not the chemical stuff), medlar and tamarind, hints of tar liqueur and salty liquorice, ashes, dried beef... have we already mentioned that old pinot noir from Burgundy? Finish: good length, full of flavours, not all easy to describe. All of this has gone on for far too long anyway. Comments: the real miracle is that one of the oldest spirits in the world, perhaps even the oldest if we really only consider the time spent in wood, which is the only valid way (listen up, novice online merchants), I was saying that the true miracle is that one of the oldest spirits in the world is also one of the best. That is, at least, my opinion. Incredible job by the Whisky Jury, top-of-the-world, they could almost become annoying, those guys. Of course not.

Nose: you don’t need long to realise the quality. Preserved peaches, lovely nectarines, acacia honey, figs and soft fruit syrups including a little rose syrup. Peonies too. Then some old Sauternes and pastries. Also brighter notes of pink grapefruit, pears and mango, with minty freshness and a touch of camphor. Almonds and subtle tobacco in the distance. Vibrant and complex, with some rancio weight and jammy notes but also a lot of fresh fruits.

Mouth: bingo. Tropical fruits like pink grapefruit, mango and passion fruit. Impressive. Then tobacco leaves come out, with a tea-ish edge and dried herbs (rosemary). Hints of Jaffa cakes and drops of old quina, which balance the jammy fruits. Sultanas, pollen, chestnut honey, alongside dried apricots and perhaps a toffee apple. Cinnamon and drops of clove oil. Eventually perhaps a tad more gritty than the nose suggested, but gloriously drinkable and never overtly woody.

Finish: long, with dried fruits, slight hints of burnt sugar, Darjeeling tea and candied orange peels.

In 1910 Titanic was being built, Portugal became a republic and Marie Curie successfully produced radium as a pure metal. This cognac too is part of that history. A rather stunning cognac – easy to predict this will appear in our yearly overview of highlights. I believe Wine4You still has bottles to offer and perhaps TWJ retailers as well. Around € 850.