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Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $33.06 $34.80
We let our Red Pineau age, and we discover that’il loses its color with time, taking tiled reflections on its...
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $37.94 $40.80
12 bottles: $29.64
Scented with baked apple and vanilla, this amber-hued brandy—aged three to four years—shows oak, cedar and...
WE
91
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $47.43 $51.00
12 bottles: $41.04
TOP 100 SPIRITS 2015. Almost like dessert in a glass, this deep topaz-hued Cognac has a scent that evokes baked apple...
12 FREE
WE
94
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $30.13 $32.40
12 bottles: $22.80
A blend of unfermented grape juice mixed with unaged brandy then aged together for 18 months in oak. 17% abv
Red
750ml
Bottle: $76.72
3 bottles: $76.00
From the moment I tilt the glass, the 2016 Carmenere makes itself known with an intensely spicy and pungently floral...
12 FREE
VM
93
Instore only
Sale
Spirits
375ml
Bottle: $20.96 $22.06
Sumptuous confectionary aromas of chocolate orange, salted caramel, vanilla, almond butter, and orange peel. The...
UBC
96
BTI
94
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $40.31
12 bottles: $38.29
Sumptuous confectionary aromas of chocolate orange, salted caramel, vanilla, almond butter, and orange peel. The...
12 FREE
UBC
96
BTI
94
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $171.46 $180.48
This version of Grand Marnier uses rare Cognac reserves aged up to 50 years. Here, the flavor and scent are closer to...
12 FREE
WE
96
UBC
94
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $67.72 $71.28
6 bottles: $67.20
This noble cordial combines both the essence of pure citrus peel and the heady flavors of aged Cognac. The two find...
12 FREE
UBC
96
BTI
95
Red
750ml
Bottle: $16.19
12 bottles: $15.87
12 FREE
Instore only
Spirits
375ml
Bottle: $26.99
Hennessy Very Special (V.S) is one of the most popular cognacs in the world. Matured in new oak barrels, Hennessy V.S...
Instore only
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $39.90 $42.00
Hennessy Very Special (V.S) is one of the most popular cognacs in the world. Matured in new oak barrels, Hennessy V.S...
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $250.79 $263.99
Figgy pudding and date syrup are sweet but not cloying on the nose. The flavors are soft and subtle, layered with...
12 FREE
VM
93
UBC
93
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $33.47
Aromas of apricot, honeysuckle, and fresh fig overlie rich buttery, baked notes on the nose. The palate presents as a...
12 FREE
UBC
95
VM
92
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $65.44 $68.88
6 bottles: $61.20
A blend of Grande and Petite Champagne with an average age of seven years. Deep copper with aromas of maple and...
12 FREE
VM
92
White
750ml
Bottle: $16.00
12 bottles: $15.68
Luc and Jerome Choblet are the third generation to make wine at their family estate, in the Côtes de Grandlieu...
12 FREE
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $20.52 $21.60
This remarkable Vin de France (thus without vintage on the label) has not only the color of a honeydew melon, it also...
WA
91
White
1.5Ltr
Bottle: $76.94
6 bottles: $75.40
White
750ml
Bottle: $34.94
12 bottles: $34.24
12 FREE
Sale
White

Carmenere Cognac Melon de Bourgogne

The deep blue colored grapes of the Carmenere varietal have their origins in France, where they are still listed as one of the elite grape varietals allowed by French law for the use in Bordeaux wines, generally regarded to be the finest in the world. However, the use of Carmenere grapes in France has been dwindling for many decades now, and it has been in several New World countries where they have seen their renaissance. Although still mostly used as a blending grape, single variety Carmenere wines are greatly sought after as a result of their deep, complex aromas, stunning blood red color and the fact that the grapes, when processed at optimum ripeness, carry some fascinating flavors, including chocolate, tobacco, and spicy cherry notes.

For over three hundred years, Cognac has enjoyed its reputation as the king of brandies. Indeed, it is widely regarded as the finest drink to be distilled from grapes to be found anywhere in the world, and it is a testament to its producers and the master craftsmen who make it that this reputation has never faltered, and remains as strong as ever to this day.

Cognac is produced solely in the beautiful towns of Cognac and Jarnac, found about fifty miles north of Bordeaux, on the west coast of France. Here, around six thousand grape growers work exclusively in the production of white wine, used for the Cognac distilleries which are scattered throughout the region. The wines are made primarily from the Ugni Blanc or Trebbiano grape - one of the most commonly planted grape varietals in the world - which benefit from the cool, coastal climate and mineral rich soils which are found there. The wines themselves wouldn’t be suitable for drinking in themselves, as they are high in acid and low in alcohol, but this makes them ideal for distillation, and they can impart their wonderful, complex, rich flavors to the brandy.

Cognac varies quite significantly from bottle to bottle, depending on how long it has been aged for, and which appellation it comes from. The Cognac region is split into six separate Crus, all with their own distinctive characteristics, and the spirit can be aged from two years (VS) to six (Hors d’Age and Napoleon) and longer.

One of the more unusual French grape varietals, Melon de Bourgogne has been grown in and around the Loire Valley for several hundred years. In fact, this grape was first planted in the Loire region of Pays Nantais back in the mid 17th century, after a devastating frost decimated most of the red grapes which were typical in the area. The winemakers of Pays Nantais were keen to cultivate vines which were hardy, high yielding, and capable of surviving another such frost, and so turned their attention to Melon de Bourgogne for this very reason. The native home of the varietal is actually in Burgundy, where it is still grown to a lesser extent.


Because Melon de Bourgogne produces naturally heavy yields, the vintners of Pays Nantais go to great lengths to reduce the amount of fruit the vines bear. This allows the finest characteristics of the grape to come forward, and also opens up the opportunity for it to express the wonderful granite and schist soils in which the vines are grown. Melon de Bourgogne is a minerally white wine grape varietal, with a very subtle set of fruit flavors. It is prized for its freshness and brightness, and is seeing a revival in the twenty first century as an excellent wine for pairing with a wide range of foods.