Norway’s Bache-Gabrielsen has been doing some rebranding and relaunching of late. Its most recent launch is a third XO expression (not to be confused with its Classic XO or XO Fine Champagne bottlings, which are both separate products and different blends). You’ll immediately notice the difference because the XO Decanter is packaged in a squat decanter and comes in a custom box to hold it.

This XO is a blend of ugni blanc and folle blanche grapes sourced from the Fins Bois, Petite Champagne, and Grande Champagne regions. The Limousin oak barrels hold spirit from 10 to 30 years, with an average age of 20 years at bottling.

All told, it’s a lovely, well-aged (but not too old) brandy, offering a nose of light wood notes that mingle with brown sugar, golden raisin, ripe banana, and a fistful of crushed red berries. Fresh and light on its feet, the palate is just as elegant and refined, offering gentle notes of raspberry jam, orange marmalade, and cedar box, all melding wonderfully with a supple dried fig and raisin note that is laced throughout the experience. This dried fruit character is what endures the most on the finish, and it hangs on for quite some time as the brandy makes its long, slow fade-out.

As quiet and demure a Cognac as I think I’ve ever encountered, Bache’s XO Decanter drinks beautifully today while serving as a signpost that points the way to a future where these spirits continue to age gloriously. I’m dying to check out what comes next.

80 proof.

A / $100 / bache-gabrielsen.com

Bache-Gabrielsen XO Decanter Cognac

$100

9.5

Rating

9.5/10