Cognac review and tasting notes
Tasting cognacs is a subjective matter and please have this in-mind when reading the reviews. All the reviews are done as blind tasting without the reviewer knowing which Cognac is being tasted. All cognacs are tasted twice first alone and then together with other cognac in order to compare. Each cognac is scored on scale from one to ten, with ten being the highest score. Nevertheless taste is something individual and each person would probably rate the cognacs differently. Therefore use these reviews as guidance but we strongly encourage you to taste the cognac yourself and make your own judgment.
Latest cognac reviews
Camus XO
Rating: 7.5 points out of 10
Intense dark amber color. In the nose sweet floral aromas, but also vanilla and dried fruits (plum and peach). In the mouth well balanced with a “soft” finish and hint of liquorish and spices. A very nice XO Cognac, with a strong presence of the signature Camus Borderies eaux-de-vie.
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Tesseron: Lot 90 - XO Selection
Rating: 7 points out of 10
Tesseron try to get around strict rules of vintage cognac classification by not labeling the bottles with the year of the vintage but instead they label their bottles "Lot 90" "Lot 76" and so on, to imply the date of the cognac. The Lot 90 should hence we a Vintage 1990 cognac (but remember no guaranties). The Lot 90 is the youngest of the Cognacs from their XO selection and is made with grapes from Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Petite Champagne and Fins Bois. Golden color. In the nose there is a scent of young fruit (pear) and dried fruits, with a hint of almond. On the palate it seems very powerful with the taste of dried fruits coming through. A rather impressive, but young XO.
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Remy Martin: VSOP
Rating: 6 points out of 10
Medium to light color. In the nose there is a scent of young fruit (green apple and peaches) but no unpleasant alcohol. Some hint of vanilla and dry fruit. In the month again taste of dry fruit (mainly fig) with a very nice and balanced finish. A rather impressive VSOP cognac.
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Delamain: Pale and Dry (XO)
Rating: 7 points out of 10
Color is medium to light, hence its name pale (much brighter than other XO’s). The nose is in the beginning a bit alcoholic but the second nose is full of green fruit (apple, pear) and flowers. In the month the cognac has a long smooth and dry taste with hint vanilla and rancio. A quit different XO with lot’s of character.
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Hine Antique
Rating: 8 points out of 10
With a color is medium to dark it is not the darkest cognac in the XO category. Hine state that the cognac is blended using more than 40 different cognacs from Grand and Petite Champagne. The nose is giving a touch of young wood but also vanilla aroma. In the month it shows depth with taste of dry fruit and a hint rancio. It’s comes across as very smooth with a nice long duration. This definitely one of the best in cognacs in the XO class
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