LDS (for Ligue des Degustateurs de Spiritueux, or Spirits Tasters League if you prefer) is an association co-founded with a spirits fella, Luc, to prove that even in the country of wine, you can organize a 100% spirits-based blind tasting challenge.
In short, gather spirits geeks, make them fight like sommeliers on various tests, and keep the vibes chill (Bring Your Own Bottle/Samples after the competition, visit several estates through an appellation).
The first edition was hosted by JL Pasquet cognacs, and it was awesome, I mean, even Jean challenged himself. Candidates took their time to visit a few cognac houses before the competition.
This year’s edition took place at Calvados Christian Drouin, and with a bit more competitors, it was a fascinating event to watch.
Which brings us to the final test of our competition. After 3 qualifying steps, 5 finalists reach the final. It’s an oral test in front of a jury. They have to describe as precisely as possible 3 glasses served blind. They are judged on 3 things: aromatic description, technical approach, and guess the reference following the 2 other steps.
So here are the 3 references served this year. Cheers, hats off to the finalists, and congrats to Kieran!
Stunning quality, but not the easiest to guess. I mean, that’s a cognac for sure, but the tricky part was to guess the cru here. Personally, I would have gone with a GC/PC. High acidity profile, funky rancio. Only one out of five competitors found that it was a 40o+ Fins Bois (congrats Charles!).
The second glass was a good challenge too. Hints of Grand Arome notes, rocketfuel ABV. Clues that could lead to Trinidad (and most of the finalists went with that guess).
Colour: Dark amber, orange lights. Irregular heavy tears.
Nose: Typical agricole rum earthy notes at first, which is not expected, considering it’s molasses-based. Light esters. Orange peel notes. Safran pie. Subtle woody notes. Gentle cigar notes. Great fruity notes, mainly on (Capovilla) apricot eau-de-vie. Very delicate profile regarding the ABV (but I let it breathe for an hour in a glass). Quince jam.
Mouth: Intense palate (65,1%…)! But even with this rocket fuel ABV, it remains tastable. Full of roasted notes in the aftertaste.
Last Notes: Cedarwood, bourbon vanilla. Apricot stew. Heady esters notes.
Not the easiest to read for sure, but a nice quality dram.
In the heart of Normandy, it was legit to taste some app…pear-based spirits! And that was the difficulty here. A calvados? That was obvious, the glass was screaming it. But what kind of calvados? By its rusticity and its freshness, Domfrontais was the correct answer (column still, 30% pear-based minimum), and none of the candidates found it.
Colour: Dark amber, orange lights. Irregular medium tears.
Nose: Delicate floral notes at first. Full of blood orange and orange blossom scents. Hints of tropical notes on young banana. Great honeyed tones in the background. Lingering but reasonable oaky shades. Light breakfast tea notes too.
Mouth: Oily texture. A bit woody in the beginning. Orange peel marmalade. Quite rustic, not what I’ve expected with the nose. Full of gingerbread and caramelized nuts aromas. Hints of plum eau-de-vie. Great mouth length on pistachio and cider apple.
Last Notes: Floral/medicinal scents. Geniver, camphor, biafine (French balm for burn). Exquisit honeyed tones again. Heady citrus notes too. High acidity and bitterness profile. Not sure that it could fit any palate. Hints of candied pineapple aromas. Dry aftertaste on green lemon and cardamom.
Truly surprising. Rustic and exuberant at the same time.
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