Cognac Preview #1 — Claude Thorin

We are going to sell so much Claude Thorin Cognac at K&L this year that I expect it to be a household name with our customer base by 2015. Brandy drinkers searching for Grand Champagne quality at reasonable prices are going to be thrilled—there's nothing this good for this cheap on the American market and we're bringing in a whole lotta Thorin for that very reason.

All of the new-make from Claude Thorin goes into new Limousin oak for the first twelve months before being transferred into used russet barrels. From what I tasted, there is very little coloring or boise being added to the final blends as the clean, fruit-driven flavor of Grand Champagne is front and center. There's nothing transcendent going on with each sip, just good, honest brandy from a French farmer. It's when you see the price tags that your eyes jump out of your head.

We were very interested in just about everything that Mr. Thorin poured us that afternoon at his chateau, but we narrowed our scope down to four basic expressions: the core range of VS, VSOP, and Napoleon, along with a 2002 Vintage that was so clean it reminded us of the Bruichladdich Bere Barley whisky from a while back. We're expecting the VS (a five year old marriage) to clock in around $29.99, the VSOP (made from eight year old brandies) at $39.99, and the Napoleon (a fifteen year old expression) for around $59.99. The 2002 Vintage should be about $59.99 as well. These will be the work-horse brandies of our collection and we're pretty sure that—after trying out a bottle or two—you'll be back for seconds.

-David Driscoll