WORLD BEST COGNAC FOR 2017 GOES TO CROIZET EXTRA

Cognac Croizet Extra

Today the San Francisco Spirits Competition announced the winner of the 2017 world best cognac. For the first time Cognac Croizet receives this prestigious recognition. Congrats!

The Cognac Croizet Extra (about $230) received the highest score for the 'cognac' category but also for the overall brandy category which is very impressive.

Cognac Croizet has been recently noticed for its vintage and antique cognacs fetching high prices in wine & spirit auctions.

This prize marks a milestone in the many achievements recived by the brand since its establishment in 1805.

I also noticed a number of cognac brands which I had never heard before such as Blancrux, Honor, Marquis de La Fayette, Mery-Melrose and Voltaire.

Sources: SFSpiritscomp.com, Cognac Croizet

HOW IS BIG DATA GETTING INTO THE SPIRIT BUSINESS?

Big Data Logo

Big data and marketing are being used in every industry including the spirit industry now.

According to SmartBrief

"Many beverage companies connect geographical data and purchasing trends to individual stores, while others collect data on influencers and use that data to engage with them in the form of multichannel campaigns and promotions.

Data has also become a powerful tool for optimizing assortments, streamlining supply chains, analyzing trends that appear on social media and planning and executing brand campaigns...

Companies track purchasing decisions at the item level via physical, online and mobile channels, and that data can be applied to making decisions about merchandising, assortment and supply chain.

But at the end of the day, just collecting data isn’t enough. Companies have to take a step further and turn that data into a decision-making tool to help optimize their beverage business."

Source: SmartBrief

BRANDY IS COMING BACK SAYS THE NEW YORK TIMES

Fun Brandy not from main stream

"Brandy has become a quiet giant of the liquor industry. More than 13 million cases were sold domestically in 2016, outpacing gin, Scotch and Irish whiskey, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. And most of that — eight million cases — was American brandy", says The New York Times.

Craft Whiskey and craft beer consumers are increasingly looking up for the next best thing and brandy seems to be pointed at the horizon.

There are the 'American-cognac like' brandy maker such as Germain-Robin Brandy  and Osocalis Brandy.

And then, there are the modern brandy distilleries such as Copper & Kings in the middle of Whiskey country, Louisville Kentucky, but also Charbay in wine country of northern California.

Even "Christian Brothers, owned by Heaven Hill Distilleries, recently revamped its packaging, while this week Gallo, which owns E&J, already the best-selling brandy in the country, announced a new, premium brandy line called Argonaut, along with the reactivation of 20 traditional Cognac stills", says The New York Times.

This is good luck for Monteru Brandy which is offering copper pot still brandy form estate vineyards, and other cask experimental brandy selections.

Sources: New York Times, Osocalis Brandy, Copper & Kings Brandy, Germain Robin Brandy, Charbay

SPIRIT AIRLINES IS NOT DRINKABLE!

This blog is about spirits and in particular cognac, but I could not help but to want to share with you this news about a different type of spirit this time.

CNN in a recent articles report that "When it comes to customer satisfaction among airline passengers, Spirit Airlines ranks dead last."

I wonder why?

My suggestion is do not try to find out why. Just Google them and/or read this article from CNN. I think Spirits Airlines qualify for the 'not to do list' for pretty much everything when it comes to customer services. There is just none and whatever services they have, it seems they try harder to make it to a point that you promise yourself not to use them again.

It is too bad, it does not have to be this way.

Virgin America was great but it is almost gone when I write this blog, Delta Airlines is OK, and I would agree that Jet Blue is often good or more. It can be done. Just try harder and use the airlines as a 'Mystery Shopper' regularly so you can identify changes. From good to bad there are often times very small details to cover.

Source: CNN

UNEXPECTED FREEZING COLD WEATHER THIS MORNING IN COGNAC

Cognac vineyard, landscape

A little bit of rain on Wednesday 26th April yesterday and -5 degrees celsius this morning at 5am caused an estimated 60% loss of  potential harvest. Today, the authorities are meeting to review the situation.

Early in the morning, producers were setting camp fires in every corners of their vinyards. Some went all the way to hire the service of helicopters to fly over the vineyards to mix the air in hope of rising the temperatures.

This is not good!

PORSCHE EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

Experiencing and consumer experiential marketing are becoming the big words in business these days.

I ran into the Porsche Experience Center in Los Angeles (USA), which just opened in February 2017. What an experience! If you are into cars, sportscars and more so into Porsche, you need to check this place.

Porsche Experience Center

There is another Porsche Experience Center in Atanta (Georgia-USA), which is older.

Porsche Experience Center

The Porsche Experience Center offers driving lessons in the current Porsche for sale in their catalog, so you get to really test drive the car before you buy it. There is also sort of a museum of older race cars which you can see and touch, versus some behind a glass window being worked on as you would buy. There is also a boutique with Porsche accessories such as neat watch, clothing, books, etc. and 2 restaurants: one for a quick bit and a gourmet seat down style.

Porsche Experience Center

I cannot wait for them to open their doors for people to come with their Porsche to drive on the track!

Source: Porsche

COGNAC GROWER PRODUCER VIDEO OF COGNAC CHATEAU DE MONTIFAUD

Cognac Chateau Montifaud XO Silver

Owned by the family Vallet for six generations, Chateau de Montifaud Cognac includes 120 hectares of vineyards that are located in both the Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne growing regions. Single Estate Cognac Grower.

Château de Montifaud is located in Jarnac-Champagne in the Petite Champange sub-region of Cognac, as are the majority of its vineyards (110/120). The family farms 10 hectares of grapes, from its nearby Grande Champagne vineyard.

[vimeo 49838895 w=640 h=360]

TV Ad (China) : Cognac Montifaud from Boucard Bruno on Vimeo.