Jean-Luc Pasquet Les Grands Alambics Fins Bois Lot 68-72 58,9%
Flowery Fins Bois
First review of this IB on Hors d’Age. Following GOTA and Kirsch Import versions, this Lot 68-72 has been bottled at an outrageous 58,9 ABV. So let’s taste this appealing Fins Bois cognac.
Colour: Amber, orange lights. Regular heavy tears.
Nose: Full of great fruity scents, mainly on rhubarb and blackberry stew. Obvious oaky tones on pinesap but it remains very rounded and elegant. Very charming nose on apple-cinnamon infusion notes. Noble rancioted shades, quite flowery, quite Borderies-like in fact.
Palate: Oily texture. Still a nice fruitiness on tinned pears, but now followed by gentle pastry aromas on almond tart. Light oaky notes on linseed oil and black pepper, but again, it remains very elegant. Nice fresh fruitiness in the aftertaste, something like young vine peaches aromas.
Last Notes: Whereas the GOTA version needs a bit of water, this one feels like the ABV is at the perfect high. A tad more flowery with air, and you get hints of violet notes, so still in the Borderies field. Great fruity notes on cherry jam too. Back on the palate, you get a distinct fruitiness on blackberry juice and fresh fig aromas. Bang! It ends with a small bite in a licorice stick, and a little kick of freshness. Fascinating mouth length which feels a lot like some 40yo Borderies cognacs.
Love this version, maybe even more than Kirch Import bottling (which was already very convincing). Nicely balanced between fruitiness and heady notes, this Fins Bois bottled by Les Grands Alambics is very original and intensely aromatic.
My very subjective note: 90/100
