Let us know how you get on.

Where did your friend get it from? Did they have any clue what it was or what it's worth? Are they going to try and sell it?

A quick google turns up this and this. Label on bottle looks slightly different, but everything else looks similar. So, maybe ~70k?

It doesn't say "bottled in 1724". As far as we can see it says "...hed 1724".

As that is the year the company started I would guess it says "established 1724".

Also notice that it says "printed in rance" on the label. That should be good for establishing where exactly this bottle comes from as it is a strange typo.

I don't find the story on the extra piece of paper 100% believable, as I don't understand why the label on the bottle should be in English, when it was supposed to be used in France. Might be an honor to the King and Queen though.

Might make sense to contact the company itself in addition to auction houses.

The label isn't to say that this exact bottle was used at that dinner, just that the cognac inside was part of the same bottling. It seems there was a series of bottlings to commemorate the visit and these were probably released for sale around the world as a "special edition", same as you get these days with single barrel bottlings, or the Glenfiddich Snow Phoenix for example.

Dcifr,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_X...C3%A9my_Martin
http://finestandrarest.com/cognac-louisxiii.html

As someone pointed out, established 1724 and bottled 1724 are two very different things. Looks like this bottle might be from the 1950s or 1960s and worth a couple thousand bucks. "Mid Baccarat era - 1950's and 60's: This bottle has a certificate attesting to it's presence at the royal banquets of 1938 and 1957. The Baccarat logo appears on the base."

http://blog.cognac-expert.com/submit-your-bottle/

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/P-1771.aspx
"For all valuation enquiries, please email photos of your bottle to my colleague Sukhinder on sss[at]thewhiskyexchange.com. Please be aware that he may not respond immediately as he receives dozens of similar emails every day."

@diablo - interesting, seems likely that your links suggesting it's worth a few grand are correct and the rando sites I found are off.

Any thoughts on the auction links I found? Seems weird that it would be a complete fabrication, but suppose it's possible. Or maybe there are some (visually) small differences between different bottlings where bottle 1 and 2 look pretty similar but are orders of magnitude different in price.

Thank you for the clarification. I thought it might be more of an "extra bottle" that was given away at the incident to some dignitaries or other people present at or responsible for the meeting. This also explains the English label as Great Britain would offer the biggest market for this "special edition".

foobar,

Louis XIII cognac is a super-premium cognac that includes lots of very old spirits. The price of that cognac is ~$2k.

The articles you referenced were regarding a very special single bottle of that cognac put up for sale, as described here: http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2011/03/28/the-70155-cognac/

"The carafe of cognac sold at the DFS exhibit was one of the few remaining in Rémy-Martin’s heritage cellars, which holds the “rarest and most delicate eaux-de-vie” in the brand’s collection since it was first bottled in 1874."

For those of you who have tried the Ron Zacapa 23, and XO I would recommend picking up a bottle of Zaya Gran Reserva.

I have been getting a bottle of the RZ 23 every couple of months for the last few years. I just finished a bottle of the XO which I love but not for the price over the 23. The XO is smother and just a little bit tastier but not enough to justify 2X the price.

I decided to switch it up this time and try the Zaya.

The Zaya Gran Reserva is right there with both of the RZ rums. Instead of the big molasses flavor that comes out in the 23 the Zaya has more of a vanilla flavor. Every bit as smooth, similar burn. Hard to tell which one I like better. Both run about $35-$40 per bottle. I think I will be switching between these two often.

For a cheaper sipper I recommend Brugal Extra Viejo at about $18 a bottle. Not on the same level as the above rums though.

Anyone try any Pyrat rums?

El D,

Thanks. Yes it does say "established"

This bottle was given to my friend as part of a whole slew of stuff from her father-in-law after he passed. It was just sitting there and they had me and my mom/bro over for dinner.

On my way out, I saw the shiny bottle tucked away in a corner and was like "hmm...no possible way that's a real bottle of Louis XIII..." so i checked it out and was like DAMN...looks real.

They said they don't really care much for it so they'd wanna sell it (which was their immediate reaction when i estimated the bottle's value without that ticket thing at 1800ish).

Thanks for the links. I submitted the bottle to that site you linked me to and we'll see what they say. I think it should be worth quite a bit more than 1800 given the banquet ticket thing and think it's extremely unlikely this was forged in any way. She is from a very well to do family and her husband's father collected all kinds of super-rare/valuable antique items. Among his possessions that they DID end up selling was some insanely rare champagne from 1960s.

Dcifr,

"(which was their immediate reaction when i estimated the bottle's value without that ticket thing at 1800ish)."
"I think it should be worth quite a bit more than 1800 given the banquet ticket thing"

I don't think you understand. That "ticket thing" is just a label/tag for the bottle.

I was under the impression that the fact that the same cognac from this batch was served to the queen of england would increase the value of this specific bottle. if it is indeed just a label then i guess we're still targeting 1800ish then, no? i submitted the bottle to that site though so we'll see what they say.

thanks again.

I had the flagship Pyrat, and I don't recommend it. It has a very weird orange flavor, which according to an interview I found on the internet comes from aging it in barrels that previously held orange liqueur. IMO it's terrible and tastes like someone mixed rum with orange cough syrup.

yea, Pyrat is pretty terrible.....it is also made by the same company that makes patron, so not a huge surprise imo.

I think I made a huge mistake by reading this thread. I was always a rum drinker before this, now I can't get enough whisky.

Tried the Oban 14, Glenlivit 12, and Talisker 10 scotches. Purchased a bottle of Eagle Rare 17yr -2008 bourbon.

I really like the Talisker. I am now also a "Friend of the Classic Malts". The Oban was good but it had a tequila-ish smell to me. Of the 3 the Glenlivit 12 was my least favorite. What's next after the Talisker?

The quest continues...

I never really noticed the tequila-like smell of the oban until you just mentioned it. Went and had a sniff and sure enough, bad memories came flooding back lol.

People seem to recommend the Balvenie Doublewood 12yr around here. I have to agree, was the first one I tried and still remains one of my favorites. Can't beat it for the price.

Caol Ila is next imo

Any of the Islay whiskies really.

This reminds me I haven't done a review of my Caol Ila 18yo yet. I'm saving it for special occasions really and have only had one glass of it so far, so can't do a full review, but I can say that it is incredible and is the best whisky I've ever tasted.

Also bought a bottle of Glenkinchie yesteday as I wanted to try a lowland malt. Not tried it yet though

Anybody had any of the 2011 BTAC yet? Any thoughts or noticeable differences from 2010?

foo,

Yes, here's a better recap than I would give: http://www.drinkhacker.com/2011/10/0...-2011-edition/

PR,

That Caol Ila 18 is delicious. I had some Wednesday at http://www.singlemaltextravaganza.com/

Mmmmmm....

I really need to get to one of those events.

Went to an awesome little whisky shop today. Two rooms offering over 800 different whiskies from around the world. Went for an 18yo Talisker so can't wait to get stuck into that.

Can someone recommend me some good online liquor stores please?

Sorry for tarding up the thread with this basic stuff, I just am sick of my local selection and don't know what are my best bets online.

Thanks!

benjamin barker,

I don't know where you are, but this site does great service to the UK:

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/

Their current promotions are here: http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/nl/nl111110.html

Also somewhat depends if ur interested in scotch or bourbon or both as there are some places that favor one or the other.