Even non-cognac drinkers have heard of Courvoisier, so when Lara got an invite to a mysterious Courvoisier event in Paris she was onto the Eurostar faster than you can say ‘la plume de ma tante’.
And now, let me throw another name at you, Courvoisier. Chances are you know this name whether you’re a Cognac drinker or not. This is a brand that doesn’t have to create spin, a name that is steeped in the annals of history by fact and association. It was glasses of Courvoisier that were raised at the inauguration dinner of the Eiffel Tower, it was the favoured tipple of Napoleon Bonaparte, it has partnered with the likes of Vivienne Westwood and Erté, been awarded the Prestige de la France, made a splash in the music world with Busta Rhymes and favoured as an ‘excellent singing potion’ by Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks.
No one of us in the group had any idea what the trip was about, but we suspected it was something big. As we stared at the horses and carriages that pulled up outside our four star hotel, we had the feeling that Courvoisier wanted our attention and good Lord, they had it. And it seemed we had the attention of all Paris as we trotted, very slowly, along the cobbled streets en route to Maxim’s.
If you’ve never heard of Maxim’s then pick up a book once in a while, watch a film. Maxim’s was the place to be in Belle Époque Paris and where we were set to spend the evening. To whet our cultural appetite we were taken on a tour of the restaurant’s Art Nouveau Museum, where over 550 pieces of artefacts collected by Pierre Cardin are displayed over three floors. Some more names I can throw at you here are Tiffany, Majorelle, Galle, Massier, Toulouse-Lautrec, Lalique.
So often you find that icons, after the fact, suffer under the illusion that the name will be enough. But I was pleasantly relieved that all the courses and all the wine were excellent, even for such a large event. And likewise the Cognac was indeed, of the utmost finesse.
I won’t have to look out for the new packaging that’s due to hit the shelves in autumn this year. I’ve already seen the future of Courvoisier and it’s beautiful.