Gautret’s history dates back to 1847, when Jules Gautret started cognac production in the castle owned by his parents. The distillery remained in the hands of the Gautret family for over 100 years, until 1959, when it was bought by the Coopérative des Viticulteurs Charentais (Unicognac AS). Unicognac is a cooperative owned by more than 200 winegrowers. Unicognac has its own distillery with 16 pot stills in use. For the maturation and storage of cognacs, the cooperative owns a total of 10 maturation cellars in different parts of the Charentes province. Jules Gautret’s cognac is a mixture of distillates made from wines from several different regions. For VSOP cognac, they are aged for at least 50 months.

The smell is fruity, floral and sweet. The taste is smooth and mellow. There is a floweriness like in a fruity VS cognac, but the cognac has clearly matured and got rid of the young sharp burn. Fruitiness and caramel-like sweetness bring softness to the taste and thickness to the mouthfeel. Apricot and toffee aromas create a nice combination and Jules Gautretia is very pleasant to sip on its own. The aging is well done, the taste does not have the “leatheriness” and the bitter tannins of an oak barrel, which are typical of VSOP’s. The aftertaste includes hints of honey and orange aromas. Jules Gautred is an excellent cognac that I could also buy again and also give as a gift to a good friend

88/100