Maker: Rémy Martin, Cognac, France (Rémy Cointreau)
Place of origin: Champagne, Cognac, France. (Not to be confused with the winemaking region of the same name).
Age: NAS (minimum 2 y/o )
ABV: 40%
Michigan State Minimum: $50
Appearance: Auburn with thick legs and necklace.
Nose: Fruity. Fresh wine grapes, cardamom, dried blueberries, saffron, ginger.
On the palate: Medium bodied and sweet. Panettone with raisins.
Finish: Golden raisins, hint of oak and alcohol. Fades fairly quickly.
Parting words: I believe this is the first Cognac I have reviewed for the blog, although I did review an Armagnac back in 2012. I decided that I needed to review a Cognac when I recently purchased a bourbon finished in a Cognac barrel and I realized I couldn’t pick out any specific Cognac influenced aromas or tastes.
For those who may not be familiar with Cognac, it’s a French brandy made from white wine made from grapes grown in and around the city of Cognac in western France, north of Bordeaux. There are six subregions within the Cognac zone: Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fins Bois, Bon Bois and Bois Ordinaire. Rémy Martin 1738 is a Champagne Cognac, meaning it was made with a blend of grapes from both Grande and Petite Champagne. According to the Rémy Martin website, it is composed of 65% Grande and 35% Petite. Cognac is distilled in an old style of pot still called an alembic still and must be aged for a minimum of two years in French oak before being sold. The grapes used to produce the wine used to produce Cognac are typically wines that don’t drink very well. Ugni Blanc (aka Trebbiano) is one of the primary varietals used
1783 (named for the date of a royal warrant the company was granted) is positioned in the middle of the Rémy Martin range and as such I thought it represented a good place to jump in to the Cognac. I was not disappointed. It contains no age statement or age grade (V.O., V.S.O.P., etc), but strikes what seems to be a good balance between fruity youth and oaky maturity. It’s worth the price, but if you’re still not sure, it is availble in 375 and 200 ml bottles as well. Rémy Martin 1738 is recommended.
Sipology 
I just wanted to respectfully point out that the label in the photo says “1738”, but you refer to it as 1783 throughout the pice (which is very good, by the way).
And then I mistype “piece”.
Ha! And thank you for the correction and the compliment. There’s a bourbon called Evan Williams 1783 and my brain must have just defaulted to that.
Are you now able to pick out the Cognac notes in the bourbon? I’m experiencing the same thing in that it has been a very long time since I’ve tried Cognac and can’t remember enough about it to pick out flavors.
I think I can discern them a little better now. There’s a grapey note that comes out that I think is the Cognac, but it’s pretty subtle and I think I get something similar from VSOF, so I’m not entirely convinced that it is the Cognac. There are also a wide variety of tastes between different Cognac houses too, so there could be other things going on in the bourbon in question that are from the finish but I just didn’t get.