Monday 4 February 2013

Meukow XO, VSOP, Vanilla


In the early 19th century the two Meukow brothers went to France from Sylesia, with orders from Tsar Alexander II to supply the Russian royal circles with cognac. The two brothers must have liked it in France, because in 1862 they created a trade office. 


I will review three Meaukow cognac brandies, the Vanilla, the VSOP and the XO. 



Meukow Vanilla: A liqueur, this cognac has vanilla flavours added to the cognac. Under the fog of vanilla lies cognac, with some oak yelling - muffled - in the tornado of vanilla. Extremely sweet, it is almost like someone tipped vanilla essence and a heap of sugar in a cognac. Not my thing.


Meukow VSOP: Helpings of bitterness overwhelm with some shimmers of sweetness, though this cognac is unbalanced and its flavours clash. There is some bursts of oak and bitter grapefruit, some prune develops towards the end as a sweetness takes over. Not bad, not great though. 

Meukow XO: This better be good! A full bottle costs about AUD$150. The nose on the XO is a little more well balanced than the VSOP, with sweetness and bitterness on a seemingly more equal footing. That seems to end on the palate, as sweet raisin is hijacked by bitter oak. The ride is a little rocky from then on, with some vanilla and mild dark chocolate developing... and then sweetness re-emerging. A little too sweet. 

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