just an empty bottle cost too much 
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coz ....
NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR
HENNESSEY'S $5 MILLION NOSE
by Mort Hochstein
Back in the seventies, food journalist Roy Andries De Groot suggested that Hennessy should insure the nose of Maurice Fillioux for five million dollars, since his olfactory skills were so vital to the success of the Cognac firm. Fillioux was the sixth generation member of a family of master blenders who have created fine Cognacs for the Hennessy family from the firm's earliest days, more than two centuries ago.
I was with De Groot when he interviewed Fillioux at Bagnolet, Hennessy's guest house, and I recalled that extravagant proposal as I talked to Yann Fillioux, seventh generation master blender for Hennessy. Things were somewhat different in his uncle's times, when blending depended more on the skill of one man. Yann Fillioux in he 21st century sounds more like the coach or captain of a football team as he describes the teamwork required for the selection of the spirits –eau de vie is the correct term—that are melded into the final blend.
Fillioux (below) and his group must produce Cognac indistinguishable from a blend produced half a century ago or another half century into the future. "Continuity is essential. Those who follow me, " Fillioux emphasizes, "will judge the success of our efforts, just as we evaluate and work with Cognacs blended by those who preceded us."
Team Fillioux 2011 has eight tasters, two in their sixties, two in their fifties, two in their forties and two in their thirties. They gather each day in a room that could be called a library of spirits, its walls lined with shelves bearing several hundred apothecary vials, the spirits in them ascending from clear young distillates to the dark amber color 
that signifies advancing maturity, many first sampled and evaluated by earlier generations of the Fillioux clan. "You must taste in the same room at the same time with the same people. Consistency is important," the cellar master declares. "Members of the tasting committee," he says, smiling broadly, "must be with us for ten years before they are allowed to speak." In their daily meetings, each morning at 11:30, they sample dozens of spirits, tasting, discussing and tasting again the eaux de vie, sampling from some 1,000 vials each year, Their task is twofold—to identify the qualities of each eau de vie and to create a memory toward the assemblage of a perfect blend. One of the younger members in that group is yet another generation of the Fillioux clan, preparing for his time in the center chair.
that signifies advancing maturity, many first sampled and evaluated by earlier generations of the Fillioux clan. "You must taste in the same room at the same time with the same people. Consistency is important," the cellar master declares. "Members of the tasting committee," he says, smiling broadly, "must be with us for ten years before they are allowed to speak." In their daily meetings, each morning at 11:30, they sample dozens of spirits, tasting, discussing and tasting again the eaux de vie, sampling from some 1,000 vials each year, Their task is twofold—to identify the qualities of each eau de vie and to create a memory toward the assemblage of a perfect blend. One of the younger members in that group is yet another generation of the Fillioux clan, preparing for his time in the center chair.
Seated behind a desk empty of paperwork, topped only by a crystal Baccarat decanter, Fillioux scoffed when I asked if he ever wore the bleu de travail, the traditional working uniform of French laborers. "No, never," he responded emphatically. "Our uniform here is a tie and suit, although," he added quickly, "I occasionally wear, what is it, a sport jacket? I wear a blazer."
The official grades of Cognac are VS (Very Special, where the youngest brandy rests at least two years in wood; VSOP (Very Special Old Pale, whose youngest spirit spends at least four years in a cask), and the top of the line X.O, Extra Old, which contains as many as 100 eau de vie, the youngest at least six years old. Complex and elegant, X.O. sells for abut $150. And then there are the super premiums, dressed in designer decanters that add to their allure, such as Paradis, which retails for about $800 and Hennessy Richard, about $3500, honoring founder Richard 
Hennessey. Prices vary wildly in the marketplace and shoppers often find themselves competing with collectors who snap up the latest spirit, since they are usually limited bottlings. The market is now especially hot in China, which is Hennessy's largest dollar volume outlet, although the United States buys in greater quantities.
Hennessey. Prices vary wildly in the marketplace and shoppers often find themselves competing with collectors who snap up the latest spirit, since they are usually limited bottlings. The market is now especially hot in China, which is Hennessy's largest dollar volume outlet, although the United States buys in greater quantities.
Paradis Imperial, ($2,200) like previous special blends, comes with a story. In 1818, the well-traveled Dowager Empress of Russia, Maria Feodorovna, implored Hennessy to create "a cognac of excellent, very old, gold colored" eau de vie as a gift for her son, Czar Alexander. The story of the spirit that Hennessy assembled for Russian nobility came down from Jean Fillioux in the 19th century to Yann Fillioux in the 21st and he decided to create a limited edition Cognac memorializing that earlier achievement.
He was, fortunately, able to dig deep into the Hennessy Founders Cellar for treasured eaux de vie dating back to the 1800's. In his words "This cognac is the fruit of generations of talents. I inherited outstanding eaux de vie produced by previous generations of my family, who foresaw an exceptional future for them. This cognac is their creation."
Hennessy launched Paradis Imperial this spring in festivities at the fabled Hermitage Museum and the Marble Palace in St. Petersburg (left), once the capitol of Russian aristocracy. Opera singes and dancers from the Mariinsky Theater recreated the elegance of the Imperial Court before an audience of international notables. The gathering included several Chinese celebrities, a tribute to the burgeoning importance of China as a market for upscale Cognac.
Paradis Imperial will be launched next summer in the U.S. and it will arrive bearing a $2,200 price tag. It is quite likely that the greater share of the limited bottling will go to China.
Paradis Imperial will be launched next summer in the U.S. and it will arrive bearing a $2,200 price tag. It is quite likely that the greater share of the limited bottling will go to China.
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