Audry Napoléon, a Fine Champagne of full maturity
Described as “the best cognac you’ve never heard of” by Time Magazine, Audry Napoléon Fine Champagne holds a unique place in the hierarchy of Maison Audry’s cuvées. Blended from Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne eaux-de-vie aged between fifteen and eighteen years, this blend occupies a premium mid-range position, halfway between the liveliness of a still-vibrant cognac and the roundness of a fully matured eau-de-vie. With no added sugar or caramel, it reflects the natural character of its two source crus.
Tasting the Audry Napoléon Fine Champagne: Profile, Pairings, and Serving
The Tasting
The color of this eau-de-vie features brilliant golden hues and beautiful clarity. On the initial nose, the bouquet opens with fresh notes of linden blossom and vanilla, offering immediate sweetness without any harshness. As it breathes, the aromatic palette deepens with floral nuances and subtle hints of yellow fruit, revealing a Fine Champagne that gains complexity as the alcohol dissipates. On the palate, it offers a supple and measured attack, marked by notes of candied fruit, a buttery touch, and a lingering hint of vanilla. The silky texture envelops the palate with roundness, and the finish—remarkable for a Napoleon—leaves a lasting impression of creaminess. A subtle hint of emerging rancio underscores the maturity of the blend’s oldest eaux-de-vie.
- Age classification: Napoleon, mid-range premium category, eaux-de-vie aged between 15 and 18 years
- Appellation: Fine Champagne (Grande Champagne + Petite Champagne, minimum 50% Grande Champagne)
- Age of the youngest eau-de-vie: 10 years
- Distillation: double distillation in Charentais copper stills, with a second pass
- Distillation on lees: blend of eaux-de-vie with and without lees
- Aging: initial aging in new barrels, then transferred to used barrels in a humid cellar
- Cask type: French oak (Limousin and Tronçais)
- Filtration: light
- Additives: none (no added sugar or caramel)
- Alcohol content: 40% ABV
Food and Wine Pairings
Audry Napoléon is best enjoyed neat, as a digestif, after a meal. Its roundness and notes of candied fruit make it a natural pairing for semi-cured foie gras or a 36-month-aged Comté cheese, whose rich, nutty texture complements the blend’s vanilla-like sweetness. A square of dark chocolate with 70% cocoa or higher pleasantly extends the warm finish of this brandy.
Aging Potential
Serve in a tulip glass—the style recommended by the BNIC—which concentrates the aromas toward the nose without saturating it with ethanol, as a balloon glass would. Pour three to four centiliters, aiming for the widest part of the glass, and gently warm it in the palm of your hand for a few minutes to gradually release the aromas—never over a flame. A temperature between 18 and 20 °C is ideal for this Napoleon, allowing you to appreciate both the freshness of the bouquet and the roundness on the palate. Unlike wine, cognac does not continue to age once bottled: an unopened bottle can be stored indefinitely in a cool, dry place away from light, kept upright. Once opened, it retains its qualities for several months if carefully recorked.
From Grande Champagne to Audry’s humid cellars: the making of a Fine Champagne
The vintage in the vineyard
Fine Champagne brings together two of the Charente region’s most renowned appellations: Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne, whose Cretaceous limestone soils impart to the eaux-de-vie a natural finesse and a remarkable aptitude for slow aging. The dominant grape variety is Ugni Blanc, whose high acidity, low alcohol content, and low sugar levels make it the ideal raw material for the Charente double distillation process. This chalk and limestone terroir, in the heart of the Charente, produces lean and lively base wines that, through the influence of time and oak, transform into eaux-de-vie characterized by their finesse and length.
The Work in the Cellar
The base wine—a dry white with low alcohol content and high acidity—is distilled using the traditional Charente method: double distillation in copper stills, with a second pass over an open flame. The first run produces the “brouillis,” while the second run extracts the “cœur,” which is carefully separated from the “têtes” and “queues” by the Cellar Master. The blend combines eaux-de-vie distilled with and without lees, each contributing a distinct aromatic nuance. Aging begins in new French oak barrels—from Limousin and Tronçais—before the spirit is transferred to used barrels in humid cellars: this method helps round out the eaux-de-vie, accelerates the reduction in alcohol content, and accentuates the emerging rancio notes characteristic of Maison Audry. The gradual dilution brings the blend down to 40% ABV, with no additives or added sugar.
