Cooking Lesson #663: VSOP Gala Cocktail

…from the Perspectives’ Happy Hour Bar

How you doin’? Not everything has to be so complicated in cocktail land especially when someone else has done all the work and all you have to do is mix.
 
What began in 1927 as a truly visionary and audacious decision by Rémy Martin’s Cellar Master, André Renaud, to create the very first VSOP Cognac Fine Champagne has become known as one of the brand’s most unique differentiators.
 
For a Cognac to be classified as a VSOP, the minimum age of the youngest Eau-De-Vie (mixing Cognacs) in the blend must be at least 4 years old. VSOP, “Very Superior Old Pale”, which is now common for all Cognac Houses actually dates back to 1817 British Royal Court.
 
The cellar master orientates himself on creating the perfect harmony of powerful and elegant aromas for the final blend of a Rémy Martin VSOP. In fact, it takes incredible expertise and experience to create and recreate this distinctive sensation year after year and decade after decade. Rémy Martin specializes in Cognac Fine Champagne, differentiating themselves by only using grapes from the prestigious growth areas of Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne.
 
In the 1950s, Chief Blender André Boufflet developed a new cognac created to be mixed. This was a first and grew in popularity until this drink transformed into a lifestyle. I personally toured the Remy holding barrel sheds and cellars and tasted Cognacs from the time of George Washington to samples that were mere minutes old. I can only imagine how much work was done so that you barely have to lift a finger.
 
Prep time:  5 minutes
Yield:  1 Cocktail
 
Ingredients 
1-3/4 ounces fine  VSOP Cognac
4 ounces homemade lemonade
1 large lemon peel
 
Directions

1. Pour the ingredients over ice in a wine glass.
2. Stir.
3. Garnish with a lemon peel and serve.

ChefSecret:  Change it up by using 4 ounces of a hard lemonade.

Quip of the Day:  A sales guy rings the doorbell on a house. The door is opened by a 12 year old girl, holding a glass of cognac and smoking a cigar. The sales guy is a bit stunned, but plows forward and asks, "Is your dad home?"
The kid replies, "What the hell do you think?"
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Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
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To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America and/or American Red Cross.
 
#Cocktail #HappyHour #VSOP #Lemonade #Cognac #Cheers #2023 #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

                                                                        ©PERSPECTIVES/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2023

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