Description
Created by Maurice Hennessy in 1870 for his own circle of friends, and the bottle that gave the X.O category its name. The blend is built on eaux-de-vie aged in oak, with young barrels bringing power and energy and time bringing roundness.
Hennessy describes the tasting as a sequence rather than a set of notes. It opens on candied fruit, then a rising heat that reveals the depth of the oak-aged eaux-de-vie. A peppery, spicy edge follows, threaded with chocolate, before a full, voluptuous wave of warmth. Then comes the chocolate lull — rich and dark — and the crunch of oak interlaced with vanilla. It closes on an infinite echo: a long finish of fading oak.
The decanter, with its curves and heavy silhouette, was drawn by Gérald de Geoffre in 1947 and remains one of the most recognisable bottles in spirits.
