French Spirits

Winemaker Description

A fairly intense style of Cognac. The aromas leap out of the glass with notes of orange zest, cinnamon, potpourri, and licorice. Leather muskiness and dried fruit join in after.The palate is powerful and sweet with notes of fresh baked apple, ripe peaches and spices. 

Producer Description

This three-year-old bottling from AOC Domfrontais is made from 70% pears and hearkens back to old-school Calvados in the best sense. Light amber in color, the nose is wild and rustic, with earthy aromas of poached pear, pear skin, along with toffee and crème brûlée. In the mouth, there’s great acidity, fresh fruit, along with green, herbal notes, and a pop of fresh fennel on the attractive finish. 

Eye: Beautiful straw yellow color.

Nose: Aromas of vine flower & linden with a touch of vanilla.

Palate: Round, rich, and harmoniously balanced. Fresh, original, with notes of vanilla and toast.

Expert Review

Jason Wilson of Vinous writes 96 Points | Falling between VS and VSOP level, this four- to five-year-old is light golden and simple. It’s fruity on the nose and a little grapey, and on the palate, there’s a lot of creamy vanilla and a touch of spice. Not particularly a cocktail brandy due to its price. It is what it is. 

Producer Description

A very subtle, aromatic Cognac. Its subtle vanilla bouquet also has floral overtones of roses and violets, leading into hints of prunes and apricots. Pierre Ferrand Ambre is superbly balanced on the palate. The aromas found on the bouquet linger on the palate for several minutes.

Producer Description

Hardy XO Rare Cognac is a version of the “Tradition” range from the house of Hardy Cognac. The brandy mixture is deliciously aged, giving a spirit of a beautiful amber color. The layered palate is a continuous evolution of inspiring flavors. This smooth Cognac has irresistible aromas and a deliciously long finish. 

Wine Enthusiast | Aromas are spirity and oaky, with traces of worn saddle leather and cedar. The palate entry is moderately rich, caramel-like and chewy; at midpalate the taste displays off-dry to bittersweet flavors of nougat, bacon fat and old oak. Ends up warming, nutty.

Producer Description 

Everyone knows that passion fruit is the best fruit, right? And, if you disagree, your taste is suspect. Inherently sweet, sour, and tropically exotic on the nose, this new realease from Giffard is already establishing itself as a favorite in the world of Tiki.

For those who prefer a boozy stirred cocktail, Giffard’s Fruit de Passion is the perfect compliment and counterpoint for dark, spiritous sippers.

Winemaker Description

Byrrh Grand Quinquina is made to the original late-19th century recipe that earned worldwide fame and inspired fifty years of evocative poster art. Byrrh combines a generous, port-like wine and mistelle base with a firm backbone of natural quinine to produce a fruity, refreshing aperitif.

By itself, with tonic and a twist, or paired with blue cheese. In cocktails, Byrrh mixes well with vodka, gin, tequila, Irish whiskey, and grapefruit. Byrrh is produced in Thuir, in the heart of French Catalan territory, near the coast and border with Spain. 

Expert Review

93 Points Wine Enthusiast | Concentrated dark fruit leads the nose and palate on this garnet-hued aperitif wine infused with quinine. Complex, rich stewed fruit notes suggest cherry pie and Port brushed with vanilla, finishing long with drying hints of plum skin, sage and dried oregano plus a hint of espresso-like bitterness.  Best Buy

Winemaker Description 

Dolin Blanc is a fresh, elegant, clear vermouth with an edge of vanilla and balanced sweetness. Pour in a pitcher over chopped fruit or serve it as they do in France - a sliced strawberry, splash of soda and a lemon twist. 

Try it in a cocktail with any clear spirit. It is a phenomenal accompaniment to fresh cow's milk cheese or creamy bloomy-rind cheese.

Laurent makes four eaux-de-vie: – two from rare, almost extinct grape varieties: Prunelard and Mauzac Rose – a Pear Williams – a Greengage Each eau-de-vie is made from organic fruits, harvested ripe then dried on mats to concentrate sugars/flavors. The dried fruits are then pealed one by one, cut in half, the pit/seeds/stalk are removed as to keep only the flesh of the ripe fruit. Only then are they crushed into a juice and fermented. On average the wine obtained is about 11% alc./ vol.

This wine is distilled in a pot still to 66% alc./vol. Laurent bottles each eau-de-vie at 45% alc./vol after reducing the proof slowly by adjunction of demineralized water.

An indigenous grape to the Tarn region of Southwest France, the Laurent Cazottes Goutte de Mauzac Rose Eau-de-vie is one of Laurent Cazottes’ true passions. This is not a fine nor a marc, but the wine and the pomace are left together during the distillation.

Hence, this is an Eau de Vie de Raisin. Laurent Cazottes is committed to reviving these heritage varietals and the resulting spirits are pure expressions of the fruit from which they are made. Biodynamic and organic viticulture are practiced. 

The age of reason. According to the freshness and the balance of Armagnacs of this age, it is sometimes time, at the end of 50 years to stop the barrel ageing. However, the use of barrels that have been exhausted of their tannins over many years in contact with the eau de vie is still possible. The aromas of chocolate, leather and roasted notes are characteristic of these very old eaux de vie. Producer Description.

Jason Wilson writes:  One of my favorite XOs, aged for 20 years in Frapin’s dry cellars, to highlight finesse and elegance. Made exclusively from grapes harvested around Frapin’s Fontpinot castle, in Segonzac, the heart of Grande Champagne. Copper-orange in color. Producer Description.

The nose is alive with fresh flowers and mint, along with richer aromas of dried apricot, pastry dough and a hint of rancio. The freshness carries onto the palate, where there’s great linear structure, nuttiness and attractive acidity, and the surprisingly intense grilled walnut finish. This is a lively, drinkable style of XO that offers excellent value.  - Vinous 96

Expert Review

Forbes Magazine: This is an exceptionally smooth Cognac. Matured for four years. On the nose, it offers up rich floral aromas of violet, jasmine, roses, white flowers and peonies, along with intense fruity notes of sweet caramel apples, honey and both fresh and dried fruit, especially prune, peach and apricot, along with Sauterne like notes of golden raisin and fig, as well as some passion fruit and a touch of vanilla. There is also an earthy, black tea like quality in the background, and a hint of waxiness.

Recently, Camus, the largest of the family owned Cognac producers, released a new addition to its core range of Cognacs—labeled Intensely Aromatic. The Cognacs were the culmination of a two-decade long effort to craft Cognacs that are notably more aromatic and flavorful than the norm.

Camus’ Cognacs have always had a reputation for being particularly aromatic. To further enhance that character Camus developed a proprietary distillation protocol, which it calls “Intensity,” that measurably increases the concentration of terpenes and esters in their Cognac, producing what the company describes as an “instant of intensity.”

Terpenes are a large and diverse class of organic compounds, produced by a variety of plants. They are closely associated with floral aromas. Esters are chemicals produced by the interaction of alcohols and fatty acids, and are closely associated with fruity aromas.

In crafting Intensely Aromatic, the firm utilized older casks made from lightly toasted, fine grained oak. The age and toasting of the casks minimized the aroma and flavor components that were contributed by the cask wood and further enhanced the prominence of fruit and floral aromas.

Producer Description

This vsop is a very classical of our style based on a blend of the two areas ‘fins bois’ and bons bois’. 40% abv colour: pale gold shiny nose: at the beginning the nose seems almost ‘hidden’ then gradually there is an impression of extreme smoothness with tea aromas. Mouth: the mouth is full of fruit ( mango) with a final smooth touch. Easy to drink this cognac combines the qualities of an after dinner drink and a cocktail base. 

Intense, powerful and well-balanced. Some salty notes with hints of dried fruits and exotic spices.

The Landier family traces their winegrowing roots in the region back to 1890, when Rémi's grandfather Julien Girard settled in the town of Cors and planted his first vines. Throughout the 1900s, the family continued to grow their vineyards and began work on the distillery; in 1973 the Rémi Landier brand was launched by his son, Jean-Yves.

Today, the Cognac house is still family-owned and managed by its fifth generation, Géraldine Landier.

PM Spirits founder Nicolas Palazzi, aka Captain Cognac, met Géraldine some years ago while she was working for European spirit purveyors extraordinaire La Maison du Whisky. While traveling in France, Nicolas was introduced to Géraldine by good friend and master cooper Jean-Noel Pelletan.

Sensing a forward-thinking open-mindedness, Nicolas stayed in touch with Géraldine who eventually moved from Paris back to Cognac to help run the family business. When we first began brainstorming producers with whom to work with on COLLAB releases, Rémi Landier was a no-brainer.

These releases represent the start of something new and pay homage to a Cognac house which has, since its inception, shared the same values and ethos that PM Spirits was built on.

This VSOP Cognac was aged for over five years in a combination of used French oak and toasted, new French Oak barrels. It is a single terroir Fins Bois Cognac with no additives, bottled exclusively for PM Spirits and the US market. Producer Description. 

Producer Description 

In the Creme de Cassis de Dijon tradition, the Creme de fruits range is dedicated to lovers of variety and different flavours. They are all produced using the same methods as the original creme, a guarantee of quality and the commitment of Maison Boudier.

This raspberry liqueur adds subtle embellishments to your aperitifs, wines and Champagnes, and a more colorful taste.