Grosperrin 33 Year Fins Bois Cognac Lot No. 1137

D&M NOTES (12/2025):

TASTING: From its deep color comes notes of milk chocolate, vanilla, leather, toasted spices (cloves, white pepper, and cinnamon), along with freshly cut pear and hints of dried flowers.  The palate gives way to richer, more exotic fruit, including something tropical  akin to preserved pineapple or mango made more complex by a hint of quince, quality toffee, and the recurring note of peppery spice. The higher alcohol level of this spirit drives the flavors and length along the palate. Unadulterated cognacs like these should be given extra time in the glass to fully develop their aromatic profile. Taste and come back to it ten minutes later and see how the flavors have progressed. (Single barrel, single vintage [1989], just 400 bottles produced)

ABOUT THE CRU: The Fins Bois is the large area that surrounds the prestigious Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, and Borderies crus of Cognac. To get geeky for a second, this is the area where, while there is a good deal of chalk in the soils, it is characterized by layers of heavy clay atop of harder rock. This quirk of geology helps give Cognacs from this area a round, fruity character. It's this expression that helps make Cognacs from the Fins Bois a favorite of the large houses, often used in their younger blends to give round, forward fruit that makes young Cognac so appealing.

ABOUT THE PRODUCER:  Grosperrin is a micro-négociant located in the ancient town of Saintes, halfway between the coast and Cognac on the Charente river. It was begun in the 1990s by Jean Grosperrin who had worked as a distiller in Alsace and Cognac before transitioning to the work of a broker in Cognac. Since 2004, Jean's son Guilhem has been leading operations, crisscrossing the region in search of hidden treasures, now working with over 150 different producers from various crus, which they directly bottle and sell as unique, small lot Cognacs, primarily from single vintages.