By Mike Feldman, Spirits Correspondant
One day, Rob and I were sitting around sampling through a bottle of wine. Rob started to relate to me the terrible problem he was having of all these people wanting him to review spirits. “Michael” he said, “I just don’t know what to do with all these bottles of booze building up on kitchen table. If only I had someone to give all this alcohol too so they could review it.” How could I not help my buddy out. As it turns out, my new wife-to-be is a lover of spirits as well; I guarantee she’ll be in on reviews as well.
This week, I’ll be reviewing Courvoisier Exclusif, a new VSOP from one of the most widely recognized names in Cognac. This spirit represents a nice extension to Courvoisier line.
The nose was dominated by mild smokiness. The taste is a rich with burnt caramel and smoke. A note of hickory sites nicely on top of a sustained sweetness. While the bottle shape is a clever departure from the Courvoisier standard, the labeling quality makes it hard to love the overall presentation.
Perhaps the most interesting quality of this spirit is it’s big, bold flavors. There is an almost unrefined quality to body of this spirit that is a real departure from other Cognacs. This is Cognac for the whiskey drinker. The seasoned lover of Courvoisier may find this a bit to much, but this may be just the ticket to draw drinkers of other spirits into the realm of Cognacs.
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