1/2/2024 0 Comments Baccarat whiskey decanterWe need water to cool the distillation process so we reuse the same water. We are working on the reduction of the water that we use in the distillation process. Have you implemented any sustainability measures already? How we can protect the soils, how we can build less cellars and find solutions for distillation. I’m representing Grand Marnier and Campari, so we’re working all together to find solutions at each stage of Cognac making. I’m also in the managing committee of the BNIC we are only 16 people in the Cognac area, so eight wine growers and eight brands. I’m working with the Cognac organisation, the BNIC, as part of the scientific management committee. We’re thinking about how we can reuse everything and how we can limit our impact on the environment. We are also working a lot on sustainability in our production, distillation and how we can be very respectful to our planet. We are also working on a limited edition for Quintessence. So this is something that we are working on, and I’m experimenting with something interesting. Grand Marnier is a very old brand, created in 1827, so you can imagine in 2027 we will be 200 years old. What are you experimenting with at the moment? I was also in charge of production of the company’s Irish whiskey, and Chinese baijiu Moutai. I was mainly focused on Cognac but there was a large portfolio of products. Afterwards I joined a family Cognac company, Camus, where I worked as a master blender, and then five years as managing director. I learned a lot about the Cognac and its intensity, and how you can marry it with different food, different aromas and different possibilities. I’m really fascinated by the distillation process. At the start I was in charge of the distillery and the Cognac production, and year after year I was tasting and learning about the Cognac. How did you come to work in the industry? So it was my first big experience in the Cognac category. But my real first experience in the business of spirits was Alizé, a brand based on Cognac and passionfruit, which was very successful in the 90s. So my first experience in terms of tasting and smelling was in the distillery of my grandfather. My father and my grandfather were winegrowers and distillers. What was your first experience with spirits? Neat is the best way, and of course if you want to have a dessert with it then this product is perfect, or with a coffee. Quintessence is housed in a Baccarat crystal decanter So now we are working on the next addition and a new collection. We have 500 carafes per year, so when we launched it we only had 1,000 carafes. So the liquid is very scarce – how much is available? We started working on this product at the beginning of 2020. It was launched at the end of 2021 but it was created two years before. The oldest is around 100 years old, very old. How old is the Cognac that is used in Quintessence liqueur? When did you create the product? As soon as I take vintages to use for Quintessence, I have to put in stock for 50- to 60-year-old Cognac, which can be used in 10 years, 20 years or 40 years. I need to preserve the stock and to build the stock for the future generation. As master blender, I’m the guardian of the temple of Grand Marnier, so I am using Cognac just coming from my predecessor. We have no limit in the Cognac category because we can play every year with different Cognacs, different history, terroir, types of ageing. We wanted to have an XXO, which is a new category of Cognac with no limits. In the Cognac category you have VS, VSOP, XO and XXO. The objective of Campari was to elevate Grand Marnier within the Cognac category. What was the main inspiration behind Quintessence? The blend comes exclusively from 11 barrels, including two from 1947, and three demijohns from Paradis, the personal reserves of the Marnier Lapostolle family cellar, which are believed to be even older. Quintessence was made with hors d’âge Cognacs aged up to 70 years old from Grande Champagne. He sat down with The Spirits Business to discuss the brand’s newest expressions, Quintessence and Révélation, which are made with XXO Cognacs from Grande Champagne. Patrick Leger became master blender of Grand Marnier in 2020Īfter working for family-owned Cognac maker Camus, Patrick Leger joined Campari Group as master blender for its Cognac-based Grand Marnier liqueur brand in March 2020. Patrick Leger, master blender of Grand Marnier liqueur, discusses his first project, the Exceptional range, and the company’s ambition to become one of the biggest players in Cognac.
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