Spring in Paris is quite an experience in itself, but we went ahead and added a cherry on top. Cherry in the form of an exclusive Cognac tasting with Maison D’Aincourt.
One of the main benefits for the Flaviar Club Members is the ability to attend our live tasting events. Destination? Check. Partners in crime? Check. And so it began. We gave 9 of our Members a chance to join us for an extended weekend in Paris, and you guys grabbed hard. Real hard!
Masters of Cognac
Our gracious co-hosts for this event were D’Aincourt Cognacs. For those of you who don’t know who is behind D’Aincourt, they are the combined powers of an Hors d’Age Cognac enthusiast, a famous designer and a family producer-distiller united by the same passion.D’Aincourt celebrates the nobility, loyalty and strength demonstrated by French Empire generals through the exceptional quality of the aged Cognacs, masculine and powerful handcrafted decanter, and elegant design.
One Night in Paris and the World's Your Oyster
Arriving from the United States, we gave our guests a day to recuperate and enjoy Paris in all its glory. Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Seine, Notre Dame… You know how it goes.
The trip included a luxurious hotel and a well-rounded sightseeing tour of Paris, as we want nothing but the best for our members. Then came the Friday night, the day we’ve all been waiting for. Clink-clink!
The event took place at the Marquis de Caulaincourt family House (Hôtel Kergorlay Langsdorff) that was built on the Chaillot hill in the 1890s by the architect Paul-Ernest Sanson for Count Pierre de Kergorlay. The family-owned mansion is used for business and fashion events, as well as individual or group visits.
Since the mansion is home to an interesting collection of historical memorabilia linked to the Napoleonic era, we received a thorough history lesson and a tour of the spectacular house. We simply had to take a few moments to appreciate the utterly breathtaking architecture of the house.
And besides, when was the last time you had the privilege of taking a photo with Napoleon? Yeah… we thought so.
The courtyard, the entrance, the dining room, the majestic staircase, everything down to the last detail screams French elegance. Oh… did we mention the Champagne and macrons reception, and our very own chaperone?
Eaux-de-vie for You and Me
When we moved to the actual tasting room, we had been schooled on the production of Cognac by the founder and CEO of Maison D'Aincourt, Vincent Norguet. Most of our guests were primarily Scotch and Bourbon drinkers and enjoyed the lesson in Cognac-making.
Seated behind a royal table, the Cognac began to be poured into our glasses. Four beautiful expressions of crème de la crème Cognacs. Four? I thought D’Aincourt only makes three. Well… I think the word exclusive has made a few appearances by now.
The House of D’Aincourt is planning to add another Hors d’Age Cognac to their already impressive lineup, and we were one of the first people to had the pleasure of tasting it. They’ll be adding Reserve XO to their current collection of Rare XO, Extra, and Premier Cru.
And where does this expression stand you might wonder? This will be their youngest Cognac, allowing them to present it at a more affordable price and to the wider audience. Right up our alley. Flavor to the people!
Cognac + Food = ❤️
Cognac is most commonly enjoyed at the end of a good meal, but we even managed to break this stereotype. Vincent showed us that good Cognac can be paired with meats, desserts, and cigars. The cocktail dinner included a wide selection of hot and cold hors d'œuvres with a variety of textures, tastes, and colors. All well paired with Cognacs, of course...Rare XO (matured for 20 to 50 years) goes well with marinated meats, while Cognac Extra (25 to 70) is a favorite amongst cigar aficionados. Their highest-end expression Premier Cru goes exceptionally well with a chocolate brownie, but being matured for more than 70 and even 100 years, make it a dessert in itself.
French Kiss in a Bottle
Just thinking about the fact that we sampled Cognacs for which eaux-de-vie were matured for 20 to 100+ years is crazy. We’ll just give ourselves the audacity of saying that every single one of us in that room had their socks blown off. The appearance, the smell, THE TASTE!
The official tasting slowly came to an end, but since we were surrounded by friends the conversation just kept on going.
We drank some cocktails, indulged in French snacks and naturally, in even more Cognac.
Since we wanted to give our guests a royal treatment of our own, we presented them with hip goodie bags containing Flaviar swagger of all kinds.
Au revoir, Paris!
We hope our Members enjoyed their trip to Europe and the 5-hour tasting event. Judging by the response below, we did a decent job ;)
"What an incredible experience! Getting a chance to sit down with the wonderful people who make this incredible product was amazing! They were gracious hosts, willing to share their home, history, and cognac. It's an evening I'll never forget."
—Tunney, Flaviar Member
"The entire experience. Flying to Paris, running around the city, going to this small private event, learning the history, getting to know the other people on the trip, hanging out, talking and then walking out to the Eiffel Tower sparkling. It was magic. It really was such a unique and once in a lifetime experience. Thank you for putting this together!!"
—Laura, Flaviar Member
"The event was amazing. Overall our expectations were exceeded."
—John M., Flaviar Member
"This was a tremendous event. I had never tasted cognac and to be honest did not think it would interest me as much as it did. The history of D'Aincourt and the flavors were beyond compare."
—John G., Flaviar Member
—Tunney, Flaviar Member
"The entire experience. Flying to Paris, running around the city, going to this small private event, learning the history, getting to know the other people on the trip, hanging out, talking and then walking out to the Eiffel Tower sparkling. It was magic. It really was such a unique and once in a lifetime experience. Thank you for putting this together!!"
—Laura, Flaviar Member
"The event was amazing. Overall our expectations were exceeded."
—John M., Flaviar Member
"This was a tremendous event. I had never tasted cognac and to be honest did not think it would interest me as much as it did. The history of D'Aincourt and the flavors were beyond compare."
—John G., Flaviar Member
Dear Members, thank you for attending this event and making it possible in the first place. You helped us create this—every single one of you. To everyone who didn’t make it, relax, we’re just getting started.
In the meantime, you can still enjoy a sip of luxury in the coziness of your abode with one of the very last few D'Aincourt Tasting Box we have available.
P.S.: Since too much of anything is bad, but too much of a good Cognac is barely enough, the adventurous lot continued touring Paris’ bars late into the night. Amongst numerous bars, we also visited the chick Prescription Cocktail Club, where we indulged in… yes, you’ve guessed it, Absinthe Cocktails!
We really shouldn’t say more at this point, or maybe we just don’t remember… Who knows.
