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The Art and the Manner
of Tasting Pierre Ferrand:
 Before
running ever faster through the range of samples on offer and contemplate
all the intricate details, just a few words on the art and the manner
of tasting eau-de-vie: the technique is progressive and follows an immutable
ritual. The perfect tool
is of course a tulip glass which encapsulates the fragrances while rendering
them exciting but not aggressive.
- The eye first
judges the appearance of the eau-de-vie as regards three points: transparency,
color, viscosity (by inclining the glass, one can observe
the teardrop effect along the side of the glass, which is the sign
of an old cognac).
- The olfactory inspection
must proceed methodically, like a four-beat waltz: the first nose
allows detection of the most volatile components, fugitive and delicate
emanations, often disguised, for novices, by the effect of the alcohol.
This olfaction takes place in three phases: the taster
holds up the glass, inclined a few centimetres away from the nostrils
to tame the burning fragrances, then he inhales the odorous "calico"
and finally, with the nose in the glass, he slowly breathes in the
exhaled fragrances. The second nose, and fourth stage of olfaction,
reveals the aromatic, less volatile and less diffuse constituents:
the eau-de-vie should be swirled around, and when spinning around
the glass, it gives off new scents. This last operation, carried out
several times, prolongs the pleasure and repeats the experience of
sweet-smelling wafts which are hardly perceptible during the first
"nose".
- The gustatory examination
polishes, refines and makes real the portrait of the cognac which
was roughly sketched during the olfactive phases. This confrontation
between the palate and the warm personality of the alcohol follows
a specific procedure: the taster proceeds by very small mouthfuls
(from 1 to 2 ml.) and with a first quick micro-sip which
is kept in the front of the mouth, he appreciates the "taste" (balance
between softness, acidity and bitterness) and the "feel" (sensation
of astringency, roundness, warmth, force, body, ropiness, volume,
suppleness or hardness, etc). The second mouthful,
longer, spreading through the whole of the mouth, gives expression
to less volatile flavors and tastes, which make up the bouquet. Then,
as a final touch, all the flavors discovered in the previous phases
finally reunite and the taster savors the aromatic persistence, with
lips closed: when it is of genuine worth and of noble stock, the eau-de-vie,
once swallowed, exercises its charms slowly in flavorsome waves, which
the mouth retains in its memory for a long time afterwards. One image
summarizes this procedure, it could be said that tasting a Cognac
"eau-de-vie" is comparable to the laws of distillation: firstly, one
perceives the "top" notes, the most volatile, light, airy vapours
which rush out in fleeting odorous wafts when swirling the glass:
then one discovers the whole range, including the least volatile components,
which take longer to experience and need to be warmed on the tongue
to be released.
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