Let’s change things up. This past weekend, we celebrated a special memory by opening some Remy Martin XO cognac. What better opportunity to look at this well-known premium cognac?
Category: Lifestyle Page 1 of 6
Lifestyle
A collection of lifestyle suggestions ranging from recipes, how to start a whisky club to best peated whisky to buy. A mix of articles that include rum and cognac, and fun whisky food and chocolate pairings.
Peated whisky is a divisive topic—some adore it, while others find it overwhelming. When I started drinking whisky, I could not appreciate the heavily peated drams. But as I explored more, I began to appreciate the earthy, smoky complexity they offer.
Today I look at the Jack Daniels Apple Tennessee whiskey liqueur. While travelling in Canada a couple of years ago, seeing all the flavoured whiskey liqueurs readily available was interesting.
There were whisky liqueurs from Crown Royal and Jim Beam with maple syrup and apple flavours. And later, I also spotted Bacon and Peanut Butter infused whiskey.
In South Africa, flavoured whiskey liqueur is less popular, and we have only been able to get honey and cinnamon flavoured. Both Jack Daniel’s Fire and Firewater (Fireball) liqueur is/was available. I have seen (and tasted) a locally made chilli-flavoured whisky a couple of years ago, but the less said about that, the better.
I was excited when I spotted Jack Daniel’s Apple Tennessee whiskey liqueur in a supermarket in Tamarin. The hubby just frowned.
Not strictly a whiskey at a 35% ABV with green apple flavouring added, but something fun to try nevertheless.
Jack Daniel’s brought out the Tennessee Honey in 2011 and followed that with the Tennessee Fire a few years later. I like the Honey release as a sipping liqueur in summer over ice; it is excellent for cocktails.
The Tennessee Apple Tennessee whiskey was released in 2019. It’s the standard Jack Daniel’s Old No 7 with tangy green apple.
Also Read: How to make a whisky bottle lamp
Jack Daniels Apple Tennessee Whiskey Liqueur Review
TYPE: Apple-flavoured liqueur
ABV: 35%
COLOUR: Golden mahogany
NOSE: Crispy fresh Granny Smith apples with bits of vanilla and oak. Quite sweet and not very complex.
PALATE: Fruity sweetness, vanilla and oak. The green apple is subdued on the palate. Hints of Old No 7 come through with bits of cherry and caramel. Smooth and easy drinking.
FINISH: Short and sweet with hints of white pepper.
RATING: VERY GOOD
Not the most complex drink, but it was not meant to be. The Tennessee Apple is a fun, light, delicious play on Jack Daniels and apples. If you love all things Jack, it is a great bottle to have on your drinks trolley and is perfect for a summer BBQ and cocktails.
I hope that it makes its way to South Africa at some stage. It retails for around Rs 2 500 in Mauritius, and I see it online for about $27 in the USA and around £29 on Amazon in the UK. But that is for a 1 L bottle. Now to try the Jack Fire as well.
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A fun change of pace today, I get to look at the Bisquit & Dubouché VS cognac from the Campari Group. I tried this cognac a few years ago when it was still part of the Distell stable. I used it in an apple cider cognac cocktail then. It was a nice enough cognac for cocktails, but I found it slightly too spicy.
Alexandre Bisquit (born 1799) came from a long line of distillers. He founded his distillery, ‘Maison Bisquit’, in 1819, and the brand has its home at the Château de Lignères by the banks of the Charente River.
Adrien Dubouché went into business with Alexandre Bisquit in 1846 after marrying his daughter. A great painter and bohemian at heart, his artistic flair perfectly matched Bisquit’s practical mind.
The company flourished and, in 1966, was acquired by Pernod Ricard. It was one of Winston Churchill and King George IV’s favourite cognacs. Distell bought it in 2009 and sold it to the Campari Group in 2017.
One of the most significant changes is the bottle design. From a round bottle with beige and gold labelling, the new bottle is rectangular with minimal labelling and a raised Griffen on the front. The Griffen is a legendary creature with the body and tail of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle and represents the strength of the Bisquit & Dubouché dynasty.
What is Cognac?
Cognac is a type of brandy named after the area of Cognac in France and includes the regions around Borderies, Fins Bois, Bons Bois and Bois Ordinaires.
Cognac production falls under the French-controlled designation of origin (AOC) classification, with production methods and naming required to meet specific legal requirements. Ugni blanc grapes are the most widely used.
The brandy must be twice distilled in copper pot stills and aged in French oak barrels from Limousin or Tronçais. The resulting spirit is called eau-de-vie, which translates to ‘water of life. Cognac matures similarly to whisky, and most cognacs spend considerably longer “on the wood” than the minimum legal requirement.
Also Read: Remy Martin XO Cognac
What Types of Cognac are there?
Cognac does not have an age statement displayed on the bottle like whisky has, but it is classified based on age and quality. There are various categories, three of which we see regularly in SA and one that is rare.
Cognac VS: means “very special”. A VS cognac is aged for a minimum of two years. This means that the youngest liquid used to create the blend was aged in French Limousin oak barrels for at least two years. A VS cognac is ideal for making cocktails and mixed drinks.
Cognac VSOP: means “very superior old pale”. A VSOP cognac was aged for at least four years in French Limousin oak barrels, sometimes longer. It can be blended with older releases to create the taste the blender requires.
Cognac XO: means ‘extra old’ and describes a cognac consisting of spirits that have been aged in French Limousin oak barrels for a minimum of ten years. It used to be around six years, but in 2018 the standard was updated to ten years.
Cognac XXO: means “extra, extra old and this is a new category that was officially added to the description of cognac ages in 2018. To qualify in the category XXO, the cognac must age for at least fourteen years in French oak barrels.
If you spot a cognac with XO and Hors d’Age (meaning beyond age) on the label, the cognac in the bottle is at least thirty years old but can be even older. Some are up to a hundred years old. These are the most rare cognacs around. And the price will obviously reflect this as well.
Bisquit & Dubouche VS Cognac Review
ABV: 40%
COLOUR: Radiant gold
NOSE: Light and elegant with notes of wood and fresh fruit. Soft oak spices and sweetness.
PALATE: New wood, vanilla, red fruits and cinnamon. Subtle, soft and accessible. Hints of pear, brown sugar and floral notes with a light peppery bite. A few drops of water open up the fruity sweetness.
RATING: EXCELLENT
The Bisquit & Dubouché VS is not the most complex cognac but it never claimed to be. A lovely entry-level introduction to cognac that is smooth and well-balanced. I rate a bottle on how long it will be in my collection, and this bottle will be finished quite quickly.
It is perfect for sipping neat or on the rocks but will work just as well in a cognac-forward cocktail. The Bisquit & Dubouché cognac collection includes a Bisquit & Dubouché VSOP and a XO cognac. The range is available in Pick n Pay, Checkers and TOPS liquor stores. The VS retails for R540.
Sample disclosure: I received this cognac from the PR company supporting the Campari Group in South Africa. The review and tasting notes are my own honest, fair and independent thoughts about the cognac.
Something different today. A potstill KWV brandy, the KWV 12 year old brandy. A few Saturdays ago, it was cold. The coldest night in 2022, and we turned on the fireplace. I needed something to warm me up from the inside, and John was not in the mood for whisky.
So I grabbed a bottle of Hennessy VSOP cognac and warmed the glass next to the flames for a bit before drinking. I posted it on Twitter, and quite a few friends responded to remind me that South Africa makes stunning brandy that will also warm me up.
I have written about SA whisky, gin and even rum, but never brandy. South African brandy is well known for its excellent quality, and they deserve some space on my blog. So I went out and found the KWV 12 year old Barrel Select brandy to try.
KWV is one of the best-known wine producers in South Africa. They were founded in 1918 and played a significant role in uniting wine producers during the industry’s starting years.
Some of my favourite wine brands are part of their portfolio. You will often see Roodeberg wines feature on my social media. The Cruxland gin, Ponchos tequila and Wild Africa Cream is also part of their portfolio.
But what is South African brandy?
To be called South African, the brandy must be produced from locally produced wine made from domestic grapes and distilled, matured and bottled in South Africa.
Colombard and Chenin Blanc grapes are mostly used. However, there are also brandies from other varieties, such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinotage and Muscat. All brandies in South Africa have to be double distilled in copper pots.
All the wines used for brandy are specially grown for brandy, not just wine that can’t be used in other ways. All brandies have to be matured in oak vates no bigger than 340l for a minimum of 3 years. Similarly to whisky, the age statement refers to the youngest component in the blend. If the bottle has no age statement, it is likely 3 years old.
The KWV 12 year old Barrel Select brandy is an aged 100% pot still brandy. It fits between the KWV 10 year old vintage and the smooth KWV 15 year old brandy. To be considered pot-still brandies, they require 100% of the brandy to have been distilled in a copper pot still and aged for a minimum of 3 years.
Also Read: Rum vs Whiskey
KWV 12 year old Brandy Review
ABV: 40%
COLOUR: Rich gold
NOSE: Dried peaches and fresh apricots with soft wood and sweetness. Elegant and lovely.
PALATE: A fruit salad of sweetness with honey and oak. Warming oak with bits of cinnamon dried and orchid fruit. Smooth and easy drinking, it is especially lovely with a few drops of water.
RATING: EXCELLENT
What a lovely brandy. The KWV 12 year old brandy reminds me a bit of a very fruity Speyside whisky. We have had a glass before dinner nearly every day this week. It warms you up on a cold winter evening and is delicious. It is readily available and affordable at R430.
Also Read: Remy Martin XO Cognac