12 Best Cognac Brands to Drink in 2023

Cognac is quite common in France for both the commoners and the rich. There have been quite several Maisons that have been producing cognac for centuries. Cognacs are excellent additions to classic cocktails. Which are some of the cognac-selling brands? In this article, learn more about the 12 best cognac brands and their key features.

What is Cognac? Cognac is a rich, aromatic drink to help digestion after a meal. It uses grapes grown in the Southwest regions of France, where six growing regions are known as the "Crus." Furthermore, there are strict laws on the type of grapes, distillation, and maturation processes to use in its production. Here is a list of the 12 Best Cognac Brands.

This section will list and explain the 12 Best Cognac Brands and their key features.

Table Of Contents

1. Hennessy

Richard Hennessy established this brand in 1765, but it later merged with Moet Chandon and Louis Vuitton to become the large and luxurious brand it is today. It's the largest cognac producer, supplying 40% worldwide. Hennessy is keen during production and uses experienced blenders to ensure you get the best drink.

Key Features.

• Hennessy produces very high-quality cognacs.
• It has been making cognac for the last 250 years.
• Hennessy is well known for its vanilla, caramel, and fruity flavours.

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2. Rémy Martin

Rémy Martin was a young winegrower who began selling the first grande cognac in 1830. Its signature cognac is the Cellar Master's, which has 400 "eaux-de-vie," making its flavours top-notch. The Remy Martin VSOP cognac has vanilla, summer fruits, liquorice, and apricot flavours.

Key Features.

• Its primary flavours are vanilla beans, dried fruits, and mellow liquorice.
• Louis XIII is known for its luxurious bottle.
• Quite expensive.
• Enjoy it in a classic cocktail, on ice, or without additives.

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3. Pierre Ferrand

Pierre Ferrand is among the best cognac brands as it takes a long to mature and has a long distillation process, resulting in a multi-layered cognac. It uses "Angeac-Champagne" grapes grown in chalky soils, giving this cognac a unique but delicious flavour. The primary flavours in this cognac brand are honey, fruity, caramel-centric, and spicy.

Key Features.

• Pierre Ferrand uses grapes grown on chalky soils.
• It has a long distillation and maturation process.
• Famous for its fruity, spicy, caramel-centric, and honey flavours.

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4. Hine

The Hine brand produces cognac from Jarnac in France, using Petite and Grande grapes to ensure high quality. To ensure the quality of its drink, Hine uses great flavour grapes and meticulous maturation. Hine blends 20 cognacs with fruity, honey, vanilla, and smoky flavours.

Key Features.

• Petite and Grande's grapes give it a unique flavour.
• A unique maturation process.
• Hine has a blend of 20 unique cognac flavours.
• They distil their cognac at Jarnac distillery or in the U.K.

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5. Martell

Did you know Martell is the oldest cognac producer and began operations in 1715? Yes, it’s older than Rémy Martin, Courvoisier and Hennessy. The Martell cognac has a unique floral and smooth flavour due to the clay soil-grown grapes it uses.

Key Features.

• Martell cognac has a unique floral flavour.
• It uses a simple but approved maturation and distillation procedure.
• Despite producing traditional cognac flavours, it constantly makes new blends and flavours.
• Some of its new blends are Martell Cordon Bleu, Martell XO Cognac, and Martell VS.

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6. Courvoisier

Courvoisier is quite common in Paris as it was the drink selected during the celebration of the Eiffel Tower opening in 1889. The brand started in the 1800s in Paris but moved to Jarnac in 1828. Courvoisier uses high quality Fins Bois, Grande, Petite and Borderies champagne grapes. This wine is quite flavorful as they distil it in handmade barrels made from 200 years old oak trees.

Key Features.

• Unique and high-quality blends.
• Borderies, Fins Bois, Grande, and Petite Champagne grapes give it the best quality.
• Distil the wine in tree oaks that are 200 years old.
• Its collection includes the VS, complex VSOP, and matured X.O.

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7. Meukow

Meukow has a unique name, unlike most cognac varieties we have discussed. It began when Gustav Meukow and Auguste-Christophe, brothers of Alexander II of Russia, Tsar, moved to France in search of "Eaux de vie." They started their own house in 1862, producing Meukow. The cognac has a "black-panther" themed bottle with a fruity, vanilla flavour.

Key Features.

• Its bottle has a Black Panther theme.
• The most common flavours are oaky, fruity, and vanilla
• Meukow symbolizes elegance and power.
• Quite affordable prices.

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8. Kelt

Kelt is quite an innovative brand, evident in how it matures its cognac. Unlike the rest, it uses top-notch Ugni Blanc grapes, then distils the wine in copper stills, and later, distils in Limousin-oak barrels for three months in the sea: simply put, it matures in the ocean. The result is a variety of flavours, such as warm oak, dried fruits, and vanilla.

Key Features.

• Distills in limousine oak barrels at sea.
• Some of its best flavours are dried fruits and vanilla.
• It uses ugni blanc grapes which result in high-quality wine.

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9. Camus

Jean Baptiste founded Camus in 1863, and it has managed to be a family business for over five generations. Its most popular blend is VSOP, famous for its spicy but sweet flavour of tropical fruits, dried fruits, vanilla beans, and cracked black pepper. Although Camus embraces tradition, they also use modern innovations to enhance their flavours.

Moreover, they use the "Intensity" patented distillation process to boost the ester concentration and produce a fruity flavour.

Key Features.

• Their blends include X.O., VSOP, and VS.
• It’s a family business with more than five generations.
• Unlike the other cognacs, the "Intensity" distillation method gives it a rich, fruity flavour.

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10. LOUIS XIII

Remy Martin created this brand in 1874. Its bottle has a design inspired by the 16^th-century flask discovered at Jarnac, and it also belonged to Paul Rémy Martin. It’s a unique handmade Crystal decanter from France, has ten spikes on its sides and 20 carats of gold on its neck. This blend contains 1,200 of the most mature and rarest Remy Martins, "eaux-de-vie."

Key Features.

• Dried fruit, honey, oaky and pipe tobacco are its popular flavours.
• Its bottle has ten spikes on each side and 20 carats of gold on its neck.
• Contains 1,200 mature and rare “eaux-de-vie”.

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11. Frapin

The Frapin family were initially wine growers, but they later became distillers with 240 vineyard hectares in the Grande Champagne area. Frapin cognac began using grapes grown, distilled, and aged at their estates.

Then, they matured in limousine oak barrels, resulting in a fruity, floral, and rich vanilla flavour. Their best labels are Frapin VSOP, Multimillesime, XO VIP, and Château Fontpinot XO.

Key Features.

• Ages its cognac in limousine oak barrels.
• Their flavours are vanilla, fruity, and floral.
• VSOP won the best cognac award in 2016.

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12. Bisquit and Dubouché

Adrien Dubouché and Alexandre Bisquit founded this brand in 1819. It’s a unique spirit made using Grande and Petite Champagne grapes, giving it a variety of flavours such as oak, vanilla, dark chocolate, and crisp apple. If you have never had this drink, its VSOP is well-priced, and you can try it.

Key Features.

• Its main ingredients are Petite and Grande champagne grapes.
• Its primary flavours are oak, vanilla, dark chocolate, and crisp apple.
• The Bisquit and Dubouché VSOP is well priced.

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Conclusion.

Cognacs are rich aromatic wine drinks produced using grapes grown in the six regions of France, known as crus. Moreover, strict regulations are set on the distillation and maturation process to use in production. Some of the best cognac brands are Hennessy, Rémy Martin, Hine, and Martell.

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