What does a $22,000 cognac actually taste like?

Want to feel the warm, gently percolating inner glow of a fireside cognac this Christmas? If a bottle of Remy Martin VSOP for $35 is just très ordinaire, why not make a splash with a bottle of Remy Martin Louis XIII Rare Cask 42,6? At $22,000 a bottle (sales tax not included), however, you may need to take out a mortgage. After 100 years in the cask, and seeing out the careers of four different cellar masters, the cognac cask was dusted off in 2009 by cellar master Pierrette Trichet.

Three years later in 2012, she declared that the cognac had reached perfection and the cask was tapped to produce just 738 decanters. This particular decanter is 460 of the 738 available. Cellar master Pierrette Trichet, checks the quality of a cognac barrel. Cellar master Pierrette Trichet, checks the quality of a cognac barrel. The 42,6 represents the 42.6% alcohol that makes up the blend -- the comma in the decimal place marking out its European provenance. St. Regis Atlanta bought the bottle, made of black Baccarat crystal with a rose gold neck band, back in 2012. Source: CNN.com