Louis XIII Classic Cognac 70cl

Louis XIII is the summit of Cognac, and this is the full 70cl decanter — hand-blown Baccarat crystal holding a blend of up to 1,200 eaux-de-vie aged between roughly 40 and 100 years. At around £4,000 it is a collector's piece as much as a spirit, and it earns the register.

Rémy Martin draws every drop from Grande Champagne, the most prized cru in the region, and ages it exclusively in tierçon casks — thin-walled Limousin oak barrels, 100 to 150 years old, originally built for sea transport and no longer produced. The cellar masters who set aside spirit for Louis XIII are blending for a bottle that won't be finished in their lifetime. Each numbered decanter comes with provenance worth keeping precise for collectors and resale alike.

The aromatics arrive in waves — honey, dried rose, fig, candied plum — then leather, tobacco and old oak. The palate is dense with myrrh, sandalwood, dried fruit and a savoury rancio, and the finish measures in minutes, shifting the whole time. This is complexity that only a century of oak can build.

Reserve this for a milestone that genuinely deserves it — a landmark birthday, a legacy gift, a bottle to open once and remember. At this price, honesty matters: you are paying for time, rarity and the crystal, and it delivers on all three.

How to Serve

Neat, room temperature, in the Louis XIII crystal glass or a fine tulip. Nose it long before you sip; never chill, never dilute. Store the empty decanter — it holds real value.

Where to Drink It

The Connaught Bar for the ceremony of it. Artesian at The Langham for a landmark evening. Boisdale of Belgravia for cognac treated with proper gravity.

Food Pairings

Drink it alone. If you must, the barest square of dark chocolate — nothing that competes.