Established in 1763 by Thomas Hine, the House of Hine – like all the great cognac producers – has been around for a long time. The house was built on the principle that you cannot have a great cognac without great white wine. For that reason, Hine draws its identity from the heart of two Premier Crus: Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne. While other houses strive for complete consistency year after year, Hine produces cognacs made with vintage crus that encapsulate the uniqueness of the stated year. Single vintages have been Hine’s signature for decades but are possible only when nature provides the optimum conditions. If you don’t want to wait for the next vintage to emerge, you can still experience the best of Hine with its Antique XO blend. This is the combination of 40 eaux-de-vie produced exclusively with Grande Champagne grapes. The family believes cognac should be strong and aromatic, which is reflected in the brand’s powerful blends. Since that dramatic arrival to the Château de Jarnac estate, Thomas Hine & Co has seen six generations of the Hine family succeed one another as head of the company. Yet, its greatest honour was surely bestowed in 1962, when the House of Hine was awarded a Royal Warrant by Appointment to Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II. To this day Hine remains the only official supplier of Cognac to the British monarchy.

Hine Cognac Range Review - Sated

More recently, Martell released an ultra-rare cognac, Assemblage du Lapin, in honor of the Lunar New Year. The special release features the house’s most precious blend, L’Or de Jean Martell 1715, mixed with rare vintage eaux-de-vie that were distilled in past Years of the Rabbit. This is surprisingly different from everything we’ve tried so far. Rhubarb custard sweetness pairs with a saline quality on the palate to create an unusual and dynamic expression that it is worth travelling to France to try! Suggested Serve Only purchasable at The Orangerie at Maison Hine in Cognac, France. Hine Antique XO Premier Cru Cognac Among the oldest Cognac brands in the world, with a legacy that spans some 300 years, Martell rightfully takes its place as one of the industry’s most respected Maisons. Despite its towering history and famous legacy, Martell isn’t afraid of innovation. Founded in 1724, the House of Rémy Martin has an intimate relationship with one of the world’s most coveted wine-growing terroirs (a blend of climate, soil, plants and human action).How have they done it? While the precise rules that dictate the production of cognac remain the same, the brands have successfully followed the zeitgeist by partnering with fashionable thought leaders such as Kim Jones and Lee Broom. As expected from the nose, this vintage is fuller, darker and more robust than the previous vintage. Suggested Serve Founded in 1763 by Englishman, Thomas Hine, Hine is highly regarded around the world for its refined and complex expressions, as well as the House’s impressive collection of single vintage Cognacs. Find out more about Hine Cognac and our trip to Maison Hine here Tasting Notes: Hine Cognac H by Hine VSOP Cognac The result is an extraordinary cognac that offers a finish that can evolve on the palate for an hour. Some of these eaux-de-vie can take up to 70 years to reach their peak, so needless to say, Louis XIII has a vested interest in the future. Blossom, peach, cinnamon, Danish pastry, Crêpes Suzette, grapes, warm prunes and melted butter flood the nose with maddening and mouth-watering occasion. Taste

Hine Rare The Original Cognac : The Whisky Exchange

In the simplest terms, cognac is a type of brandy produced using white grapes. Like champagne, a cognac can only be described as such if it is made in the Cognac region, located in France’s southwest. The grape juice is double-distilled in copper stills to produce a young spirit called eau de vie (water of life), which is then aged in oak casks. Those casks must be either brand new (virgin casks) or previously used to age cognac. Compare this with the Scotch whisky industry, which can use casks previously used to age a variety of other spirits, like bourbon or even tequila. Strikingly different from the UK-aged vintage! Rich toffee and salted caramel, with a fruit basket of cherry, prune and dark berries that is complex without weighing heavily on the palate. Suggested ServeIf you’re looking for a vintage comparison between Early Landed and Jarnac aged, why not try Hine 1983 Vintage Cognac alongside Hine 1983 Early Landed Vintage Cognac . Hine 1985 Grande Champagne, Aged in Jarnac Courvoisier is also one of the most experimental of the great Cognac houses. The house recently revealed an experimental cognac aged in rare Japanese mizunara oak casks. These exceptionally rare casks are prized among distillers for their ability to impart a particular spice to a spirit. Due to its slow growth and tendency to twist, the oak itself is in very short supply. Neat and next to the below bottling (aged in France) of the same vintage to see the difference. Price Having been in the same hands since inception and operating in the same family-owned vineyards, Camus is able to offer a range of extraordinary single-estate cognacs. These cognacs contain grapes grown in the family’s private vineyards, which are cultivated in a sustainable way to ensure the preservation of local flora and fauna. Although owned by the House of Rémy Martin, Louis XIII is worthy of its own section due to its position at the pinnacle of cognac production. A single blend of Louis XIII can contain up to 1,200 of the most treasured eaux-de-vie in its vast cellar.