Interview: Louis XIII Baptiste Loiseau's Head Cellar

The young cognac blender shares a unique drink of a lifetime

The House of Cognac LOUIS XIII

boasts a rich tradition and origins dating back to the early 18th century in the Cognac region of France. Since then, the brand has diligently prepared and produced some of the world's most famous Cognacs. We recently joined the house's leading cellar master, Baptiste Loiseau, at the launch of their latest incredibly rare expression, RARE CASK 42.1. This is the only cask from which the liquid for the limited release was isolated, and it took 10 years to select, on the advice of the youngest master blender in the company's history. Loiseau, just 34 years old, told us the story of this world-class elixir.

What has happened over the past 10''years?

I took over as cellar master almost 10 years ago, in 2014. This is really the first time for me to have the privilege of presenting something that is much more personal in its approach. The first two RARE CASKs were selected and presented by the previous cellar master. So, for me, this is the first time I can present something truly rare from the cellar. It only comes from one barrel, and I decided to show the facets that I chose on my intuition.

Some ideas and skills are passed down from previous cellar masters. How do you give it your unique imprint? After all, you have to pass it on to the next generation.

This is actually a blend that a previous cellar master made. My choice was that''To show it and not to mix it up with others. The courage lies in discovering the potential of aging and making sure that at a certain point it reaches the perfect balance to be highlighted on its own. It's more of a choice guided by the emotions I experienced when I discovered this liquid, because no one, not even myself, can replicate it. It's really just something that comes from one barrel and that's it.

Can you tell us a little bit about the cask and the conditions it's been in over the last 10 years?

RARE CASK is really the oldest barrels we have in our cellars, they are over a hundred years old and they are stored in different places. But for this occasion it was stored in a special cellar in a small village, on an estate that is part of''of the family ownership of this house.

What makes this cognac so unique compared to others released by this house? "

It has some features that make it different from the others. The previous one was RARE CASK 46.6, it was more fruity in texture and had notes of fall, the season when New York has plums and stone fruits. I was struck by the fact that the 42.1 is much more floral. There are very pronounced hints of flowers, such as dried rose and lilac. It really bewitched me because in my childhood, I spent a lot of time with my grandfather who was a florist and grew flowers and vegetables. It reminded me of''All the memories I had in the garden that encompassed more about the flowers than the food. That's the power of tasting. When you taste something from the same barrel that takes you back to your hidden memories from over 30 years ago, you find something that encourages you to choose that particular one.

Tell us a little about the decanter and what makes it so unique.

We will be celebrating our 150th anniversary next year. From the beginning, we decided to use the same mold for the decanter, which is historic to our house, but made of black crystal, which is much more difficult because it's hard to create exactly the darkness. For us, it's really a time imprint and also a symbol of something that has been kept in the darkness of our cellars for a long time.

What surprised you during''of this experience?

We are facing climate change and the fact that the flavors we have in the fields, in the grapes and in the wine have a different ratio of sugar, acidity, etc. We are facing big challenges and now we are trying with our team to find a solution for the next generation to keep everything in the same style. We all agree that we need to find a solution to adapt to the conditions we face. Here is the big challenge in front of us, but I am really proud of what my team is doing and I am confident that we will find a solution to adapt to these conditions.

What are your thoughts for the next 10 years?

We will continue to work to maintain consistency and strive for high quality for the next generation.''I need to take the paved path because of all the grape varieties I'm picking with my team right now, I'm not going to make the final blend. Heritage will be a key element in the making for the next 10 years and decades and centuries.

You can sample this rare expression at NHYC's Baccarat Hotel, Miami's Faena Hotel, Las Vegas' Delilah establishment and Los Angeles' Bel Air Hotel until the decanters are empty.