Vintage (((Bottled 2023)))
⏳ Drinking Window
Ready to enjoy upon release, as Cognac does not continue to mature once bottled. It will remain in peak condition for several decades if stored upright in a cool, dark place.
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Dark chocolate, blue cheese, roasted duck
✨ Technical Specifications
Hine is highly distinguished in the Cognac world for its dedication to single-vintage expressions, a rare practice in a region dominated by multi-vintage blends. Sourced from the chalky, sun-drenched hills of the Grande Champagne premier cru, these vintage releases capture the specific climatic narrative of a single harvest. The house employs a dual aging philosophy: some casks remain in the riverfront cellars of Jarnac to develop rich, robust, and spicy characteristics, while others are shipped to the United Kingdom as 'Early Landed' Cognacs, where the damp, cool maritime climate of Bristol coaxes out ethereal, floral, and remarkably delicate nuances. A vintage bottled in 2023 represents the culmination of decades of patient maturation in French oak, bottled only when the Cellar Master deems the spirit to have reached its absolute peak of complexity and harmony.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1763 along the banks of the Charente River in Jarnac, Thomas Hine & Co. represents one of Cognac's most distinguished artisanal houses, underscored by being the sole cognac house to hold a British Royal Warrant since 1962. Hine centers its philosophy on the premier crus of Grande and Petite Champagne, farming 115 hectares across the chalk-dominant, undulating hillsides of Bonneuil under certified sustainable practices (HVE and CEC). Under long-standing Cellar Master Eric Forget, the house champions the belief that monumental cognac begins as pristine white wine. Vinified exclusively from Ugni Blanc, the wines undergo double distillation on fine lees in traditional Charentais copper pot stills, followed by aging in lightly toasted, fine-grained French oak casks to preserve floral vivacity and mineral nuance. Renowned for its single-estate and single-vintage bottlings, Hine is celebrated globally for benchmarks such as Antique XO Premier Cru, Homage Grand Cru, and its legendary Early Landed vintages matured in humid British cellars.
🍇 Base Material
Ugni Blanc