Martell Cordon Bleu

★★★★★☆

♚

The Martell Cordon Bleu is a cognac that is described by Martell as having a distinctive taste “characterised by a predominance of eux-de-vie from the Borderies growth”.  This cognac has been awarded a Double Gold at the 2012 San Francisco World Spirit Awards, and in line with this glowing endorsement my tasting of the Martell Cordon Bleu revealed an exceptional cognac with an almost perfect balance between sweet dense fruits and oaky bitterness that set the foundation for fireworks of spice. 

Nose

The spark of spice shimmers in the deep fog of dense berries like blueberry, raspberry and krakerberry. All the while the nose is elegant and rich. In that backdrop the smell of oak and buttery richness adds further depth and density, all blended together like a skillfully prepared peach Tarte Tatin.

Taste

With a silky soft texture this cognac delivers a dry foundation upon which is built dried prunes and sultana, ending with crushed peppercorns and ground coffee that wrestles with the similarly bitter oak. This cognac is initially sweet but quickly balances with lashings of bitterness and a density that releases smokiness.

Finish

The almost perfect balance on this cognac translates into a finish that allows sweet and dense dried fruit, bitter oak and coffee, spicy peppercorn and rich butter to dance on the tongue; a dance that lasts a very long time.

Overall

The Martell Cordon Bleu is an elegant cognac that delivers complexity and depth with an almost perfect balance, which means that it is not overly sweet. It offers bursts of dryness and bitterness all enlivened with the theme of sweet dried fruit and the energy of spice which explode like fireworks in the night; very much like a masterful Tarte Tatin caramelised to perfection.