Remy Martin XO Cognac Review No. 31

I'm sippin' Crystal Exo-Cognac Dreams, you taste so good to me. Baby, let me call this bit of honey on the Royal Pie. Crystal Exo-Cognac Dreams, you taste so good to me. Baby, let me call this bit of honey on the Royal Pie. Bonjour. Welcome. Thanks for joining me, fellow Cognac connoisseurs. This is Max's Cognac Review. Today, I'll be reviewing a very special bottle. It is the Remy Martin Exo. And this is where Cognac all started for me. Just like everybody else, I did start drinking the VSOP and the Hennessy VS to start. But the Exo-Remy was the very first Exo and the very first Cognac I drank that really started me down my Cognac journey that I'm here on today. So I'm going to give this a taste, going to give it a try. I have not had it for some years. And it's a very nostalgic bottle for me. So without further ado, let's give it a nose and let you know what I think. The genie-shaped bottle and design is absolutely beautiful. It's incredibly heavy. Very, very well put together. And definitely one of my favorite shapes and designs for a Cognac bottle. The eau de vie itself is a beautiful amber color. It has a very radiant glow. And the viscosity is very thick. You can see beautiful spider legs running down the glass. And this is an indication of a well-aged Cognac. The color looks natural to me. Most younger Cognacs, they add a little bit of E-150 or caramel. This is to give the Cognac that dark amber color and also to add a little bit of flavor. But when you get to Exos and above, this isn't needed because the aging, it actually creates these qualities naturally. The aging, the long time spent in barrels gives it that natural dark color. And it gives it that nice, rounded, ratio-filled nose and palate that they tried to recreate in the younger Cognacs by adding the E-150. So it's a very beautiful, naturally colored Cognac that I am very eager to try. Right out the gate, I can tell you there's a lot of flavor. This Cognac certainly packs a punch. And although it is not overwhelming, it definitely has a unique character. One thing to note about the Remy Martin Exo is it is a fine champagne Cognac. This differs from the standard Hennessy Exo, for example. Fine champagne Cognac can only be made with Grand Champagne and Petit Champagne grapes, the two most desirable regions in Cognac. It is typically a ratio of 70% Grand Champagne and 30% Petit Champagne. So although, for example, the Hennessy Exo is a beautiful Cognac, it is blended from many different regions. And it doesn't have the same punch or unique character that you're going to find in a strictly Grand Champagne or fine champagne Cognac. I'm getting figs, I'm getting a lot of wood, a little bit of vanilla that's coming from the aging from the wood barrels. It's sweet with a very strong, fruit-forward aroma. It definitely grabs your attention. It's by no means a dull, monotone Cognac. It smells like it has an immense amount of flavor. I'm going to take a sip, let you guys know what I think. Very distinct. Again, most Cognacs are blended with many different eau de vies from many different regions. There's almost a dozen different regions within Cognac. But this is a very distinct flavor. I'm getting white raisins, I'm getting dried figs, I'm getting a little bit of cinnamon, a little bit of toffee, white grapes, and a very long but very delicate finish. It certainly does not have any alcohol. It certainly does not have an intense burn. It is spicy in a sense that the flavor is very pronounced. It's not a dull, monotone Cognac by any means. I'm going to give it another taste, let you guys know what I think here. When it first hits your lips, I would say it's kind of a dry and pale flavor and taste. And it really kind of evolves into a sweeter, candied finish on the end. I'm getting a lot of white fruit. I'm getting the dried white grapes. I'm getting some dates. I'm getting a very ripe yet fresh fruit flavor and palate. I believe that this is partly due to the fact that it is a fine champagne Cognac. And the grapes from the Grand Champagne region, as well as the Petit Champagne region, are known for having the most flavor, the most intense fruit bouquets out of most of the regions. The only other region that has, I would say, as much prestige or close to as much prestige as the Grand Champagne and Petit Champagne regions is the Borderies region, which is a very small, nuance-like region located nearby. On the finish, you're definitely left with a little bit of the oak, a little bit of wood, I'd say a hint of sandalwood. And as the intensity wears off, you're left with a nice fruit bouquet, almost a floral, ripe fruit bouquet that, again, is an amazing balance of spicy, intense, but delicate and eloquent at the same time. This Cognac is not as smooth, per se, as an XO Hennessy. But I will say that it actually has more flavor. It captures the true essence of Cognac and the most prestigious regions within with more accuracy. The flavors in here are incredibly pronounced. You're getting incredibly distinct bouquets of fruit, of floral aroma, and you're getting the age, the sandalwood, the oak, the vanilla, that comes from those long years of barrel aging. XO Cognacs have to be aged for a minimum of 10 years in an oak barrel. They can be aged with eau de vie and barrels that have been aged for 30 years plus and everything in between. But the minimum age has got to be at least 10 years for an XO Cognac. The law used to be 6, and recently it was brought back up to 10 years, which I'm happy to announce and say because it keeps the integrity of the XO grade intact. I am very happy with this. I strongly recommend it. For me, this Remy Martin is a 95 out of 100. Thanks for joining me. Until next time.