Louis XIII has introduced Black Pearl: Tribute to the Birthplace of Louis XIII, a Cognac priced at £21,000 per bottle. The release is designed to recreate the experience of tasting Cognac straight from a cask in the historic Le Grollet cellar.
Its midnight-blue decanter comes with a dedicated cooling cabinet that maintains a temperature of up to 13°C. At a London tasting, Cellar Master Baptiste Loiseau explained that serving it at this temperature evokes a winter cask tasting at Le Grollet.
Initially, the Cognac shows savoury, earthy and nutty notes, with flavours of beeswax, spice and coffee. As it warms, more delicate aromas emerge, including jasmine, iris, passion fruit, dried apricot and anise. Its creamy, full texture gives way to a notably long finish.
Black Pearl combines a single cask of Louis XIII with an eau-de-vie distilled in the early 20th century. Loiseau said the older spirit brings “raw authenticity” to the blend, alongside Louis XIII’s elegance.
Only 398 decanters are being released worldwide. Twenty-seven are available in the UK, including through the Louis XIII boutique at Harrods.
How to make a Proika cocktail
At The Clumsies in Athens, the Proika cocktail was created for a menu inspired by artists living in the Greek capital. The drink takes its inspiration from sculptor Argyris Rallias and pairs savoury blue cheese vodka with fig and honey, with sundried tomato adding depth.
Ingredients
- 60ml blue cheese vodka
- 30ml fig cordial
- 5ml lime juice
- Rocks glass
- Garnish of your choice
Blue cheese vodka
Pour 1 litre of vodka over 500g of blue cheese and leave to infuse at room temperature for 24 hours. Refrigerate for a further 24 hours, then strain. Freeze the liquid to solidify the fat and strain again to produce clear, fat-washed vodka.
Fig cordial
Combine 1kg chopped dehydrated figs, 500ml water, 600g sugar, 300ml tomato water, 40g chopped sundried tomatoes, 3g dried thyme, three black lemons, 200ml amontillado Sherry and 100g honey in a pan. Heat until the sugar dissolves, leave to infuse for 24 hours, then strain.
Method
Shake the ingredients with ice, then strain into a tumbler over a large ice cube.