Why a site dedicated to Cognacs?

Just because Cognacs are fantastic spirits, and independant guides to Cognac are not so common!

Tasting cognacs is really a wonderful experience. Moreover, not even tasting, but only nosing a great Cognac can be fascinating in itself.

First, a cognac is a waltz of fragrances and aromas: from simple wild flowers to sophisticated oriental bouquets, from fresh fruits to baskets of candied fruits and jams, almonds, hazelnuts, chestnuts, candied fruits, mild or hot spices, teas, tobacco, Indian incenses, bread and chocolate.... The list of perfumes and delicacies seems never-ending...

Then, the process of production is as complex as rich in traditions.

The name "Cognac" is famous worldwide, but do you know that Cognac is also a town?

Perhaps you have heard the names of the most famous Cognac houses, but do you know that even these gigantic firms do not produce themselves all their "eaux de vie", the new-make spirits that will - one day, after years of aging- become a cognac ready to be tasted? Nearly all the spirits produced in Cognac come from thousands of small producers, called the "bouilleur de crus" which means "distillers». They distil the wines produced in Cognac area in tiny alembics (each alembic has a capacity of 25 hl, about 650 gallons...less than 6 baths or 2 spas!) and sell the spirits to the Cognac houses...and from time to time, produce and bottle their own cognac.

So even when the firms belong to huge groups, and export millions of bottles, the making of their eaux de vie looks more like handicraft than like industry!

Producing Cognac is so long, so difficult, so expensive, that nowadays it could not be invented: nobody would invest in such a stupid business!Profitable, of course, but after so many years!

The history of distillation itself is captivating. It is closely connected with the history of perfumes and with alchemy, which means not only an early form of chemistry and physics, but also philosophy, spirituality and ...witchcraft.

From Egypt to Italy, from China to France, from Arabia to Ireland, alchemists made experiments in their labs during centuries, throughout all the Middle Ages. They wanted to change all metals in gold, and to find the ultimate remedy that would cure all men's disease...
They did not achieve these goals, yet they discovered the secret of "aqua vitae", the water of life: distilling fermented liquids, and especially wines, to make spirits. A liquid form of gold?

Now there is another corporation of artisans, the coopers, whose science dates also back to antique times. Then the cellar masters, the custodians of the Cognac temples who patiently age and transform the « eaux de vie » year after year before blending them.

The history of area is full of sound and fury.

Cognac and cognacs would not exist nowadays if men in Antique times had not been seeking the best salts throughout the world to preserve food; if English kings had not fallen in love; if the Dutch had not explored all oceans since 15th century to buy and sell wines and papers; if Sweden had not exported copper; if Russian tsars had not loved drinking strong alcohols... And moreover, if young and intrepid adventurers had not come from the North of Europe, from Ireland, Holland, England, Jersey... They were running after their own fame and fortune, they gave prosperity to a whole region.

Cognac and Cognacs survived through centuries, trough religious wars, peasant's uprisings, French revolution, Napoleon blockades, and phylloxera disease...for the enjoyment of all spirits lovers.

The image would not be complete without the delimitation of the producing areas, "the Crus", first sketched by the mythic yet real duo composed of Mr Coquand, geologist, riding his horse across the hills of Cognac at the end of the 19th century with a broker expert in spirits tasting. In the grand saga of world wines, that wonderful story can compete with the adventures of Don Quixote and Sancho Pança!

Cognac is epic poetry

Robert Louis Stevenson said once that "Wine is bottled poetry", well I would say, "Cognac is epic poetry". A bottle of Cognacs is like a magic lamp: when you open it, you liberate generations of alchemists, knights and sailors, who offer you the dream of dead cellar masters' ghosts...

Follow me through the world of Cognac, trust me, you will not regret the trip!

And you will clearly be convinced of one thing: Cognac, it's just gold in your glass.