XO Excellence Cognac
⏳ Drinking Window
Best served neat at room temperature (18–20°C) in a tulip spirit glass to concentrate aromatic esters, or over a single hand-carved ice sphere to open tertiary aromas.
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Neat serve accompanied by artisanal single-origin 70% dark chocolate, roasted duck breast with fig reduction, or a medium-to-full-bodied Maduro cigar.
✨ Technical Specifications
Crafted from a complex assemblage of over one hundred distinct eaux-de-vie aged between 10 and 30 years, this bottling demonstrates double distillation in traditional Charentais copper pot stills on fine lees. Maturation occurs in seasoned French Tronçais and Limousin oak barrels, facilitating profound micro-oxygenation and wood tannin extraction that develops robust rancio, dried fruit character, and warming spice depth without masking the underlying floral spirit baseline.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in 1765 by Irish officer Richard Hennessy along the banks of the Charente River, Maison Hennessy has defined the architecture and prestige of modern Cognac. Sourcing primarily Ugni Blanc across the region's elite crus—notably Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, and Fins Bois—the house relies on chalk-dense, limestone-rich soils and a temperate maritime microclimate to achieve base wines of searing natural acidity. Double-distilled on the lees in traditional Charentais copper pot stills, the unaged eaux-de-vie mature inside fine-grained French Tronçais and Limousin oak casks, orchestrated through humid and dry aging cellars. The blending process has been shepherded across eight generations of the Fillioux dynasty, overseen today by Renaud Fillioux de Gironde and the venerated Tasting Committee. From benchmark bottlings such as V.S.O.P Privilège and X.O to crowning legacy assemblages like Hennessy Paradis and Richard Hennessy, the house embodies exceptional purity, structure, and centuries of architectural blending finesse.
🍇 Base Material
Ugni Blanc
🍷 ABV
40%