Prunier Lot 40 G.C 55%

Intense G.C

First Prunier on Hors d’Age. And what a first one. Lot 40 means 1940. Yes. 81 yo Grande Champagne, bottled in 2021 at 55% for Whisky Mercenary (42 bottles). No other word needed here.  

Colour: Mahogany, orange lights. Heavy irregular tears.

Nose: Very heady scents of orange liquor at first. Full of bitter chocolate and various spices. Very dense nose, it needs air for sure. Heavy rancio on wet undergrowth and old leather scents. Still very heady on orange blossom and earl grey tea. A tad of saltiness on olive oil and anchovy. Nice bitterness and roasted notes on cocoa and coffee beans. Light appearance of fruity notes (mainly tinned peaches), but I think this Prunier Lot 40 still needs some air to be at its fullest.

Mouth: Sweet texture with a tad of acidity. Great balance between fruitiness and tannins at first. Still, some delicious chocolate tones. The extreme ABV finally seems very relevant here. Way spicier now with hints of paprika and caraway. Nice balance between fruity aromas (overripe plums, mango) and tannins (black pepper, pine bark, rotten wood). It ends on peach liquor, raisins and typical nutty P.X notes.

Last Notes: I added two tears of water for the end of this tasting. Full of candied citruses now. A tad of sugariness in the background on toffee and caramel sweets followed by delicious nutty scents on nougat. Light acidulous tones of blackcurrant and strawberry juice. Back on the palate, you find tea-ish and spicy shades. Breakfast tea melted with fresh notes of cardamom and white pepper. Still fruity on strawberry and grenadine syrup counterbalanced by a light saltiness (again) on meat juice and green olives. Gigantic mouth length on various herbal notes: tarragon, infused bay leaf, cooked basil and a great dash of black pepper.

Mesmerizing quality here. Great balance between tannins, spiciness and fruitiness. The ABV is surprisingly at the right high, but it also works with a little dilution. Maybe a little lack of something, this extra-touch that I found in the Bons Bois N°38 (unreal freshness) or Le Cognac de Regis (incredible balance between acidulous P.C notes (even if it’s a G.C) and various types of rancio). But 92+, well, this Prunier Lot 40 is the 2nd best G.C ever on Hors d’Age (before the next Interstellar session?).

My very subjective note: 92+/100

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