Michel Couvreur : Very Sherried 2024 Edition 1998

Characteristics and Tasting Tips for the Very Sherried 2024 Edition 1998 by Michel Couvreur

Tasting

Appearance
The Very Sherried 1998 Edition 2024 reveals a deep amber hue with ruby highlights, entirely natural and with no added caramel. This intense colour is the result of 26 years of maturation in Amontillado and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks in Michel Couvreur's Burgundian cellars.

Nose
The nose opens with floral impressions balanced by woody notes, before revealing, with aeration, a palette of plum, brown caramel, raisins, wild berries, oak, cinnamon, nutmeg and garden herbs. Nuances of vanilla, almond and Sherry complete this highly complex bouquet, in a style the House describes as sensual and bewitching.

Palate
The palate is smooth and silky, carried by honeyed and waxy notes that evolve towards nougat, revealing a perfect harmony between the distillate and the wood. Dried fruits, candied fruits and fresh almond mingle with oxidative nuances of tobacco, leather and old oak, reminiscent of the atmosphere of damp cellars. The very long, tense finish offers great spicy complexity, supported by an intense and concentrated texture.

Pairings and Tasting Occasions

This whisky is ideally enjoyed as a digestif, in a quiet moment, neat and unadorned, to fully appreciate its aromatic concentration. It pairs wonderfully with a dark chocolate dessert, whose bitterness and spices it highlights, or with a crème brûlée that echoes its notes of vanilla and caramel. It is also a perfect companion to a medium to full-bodied cigar, its leather and tobacco notes harmonising ideally with the tobacco. A few drops of water may be added to open up the bouquet and reveal new aromatic facets.

Mixology

An exceptional product from a rare single cask, the Very Sherried 1998 Edition 2024 is designed to be enjoyed neat, without embellishment, in order to preserve all the complexity acquired over 26 years of maturation.

A Highland Scotch single malt enhanced by 26 years in sherry casks in Burgundy

Michel Couvreur: the Burgundian House of exceptional Scotch whisky

Founded by Michel Couvreur, a Belgian who became Burgundian by adoption and a producer and négociant of Burgundy wines, the House settled in 1956 in the Molet cellars in Bouze-lès-Beaune, before its founder moved to Scotland in the 1960s to select Scotch whisky distillates. Registered as a Scottish distillery in 1978, the House matures its whiskies exclusively in its underground Burgundian cellars, in Sherry, Port and Malaga casks, following a philosophy in which the cask takes precedence over distillation. Since the passing of Michel Couvreur in 2013, continuity has been ensured by his daughter Alexandra Couvreur-Deschamps, his son-in-law and co-director Cyril Deschamps, and cellar master Jean-Arnaud Frantzen, who has been in post since 1998. Michel Couvreur thus remains a unique reference for whisky matured in Burgundy.

Very Sherried 1998 Edition 2024: a rare single cask matured in Amontillado and Pedro Ximénez casks

The Very Sherried 2024 Edition 1998 Whisky belongs to the emblematic Very Sherried 1998 series from the House of Michel Couvreur, of which it is the oldest edition to date. Distilled in Scotland on 16 June 1998, this unpeated Single Malt Scotch Whisky was matured for 26 years in the Burgundian cellars of Bouze-lès-Beaune, in casks that previously held Amontillado and Pedro Ximénez sherry. This dual influence enriches the aromatic palette of the distillate, with the Amontillado contributing notes of nuts and dry wood that layer over the luscious richness of the Pedro Ximénez.

Bottled on 22 October 2024 at its natural strength of 50.5%, without reduction or chill filtration, this whisky was drawn off in a very limited series of 50 cl bottles, making it one of the rarest bottlings from the House. Its entirely natural colour results exclusively from the prolonged interaction between the distillate and the wood. This single cask continues the tradition of the 2022 and 2023 editions of Very Sherried 1998, while marking a further step in the patience and precision that characterise Michel Couvreur's approach to maturation.