E&J XO Brandy

The nose is terrifying. Hints of artificial apple flavour. Tastes violently of artificial caramel flavour.

Don’t know much about Brandy but I enjoy this

Nose - maple syrup, cinnamon, brown sugar, vanilla, melted butter, butter pecan ice cream, raisin, high ethanol burn. Taste - butter pecan ice cream, french toast, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, hot crossed bun, brown sugar, caramel syrup, boozy raisin, moderate alcohol bite, finishing longer than expected with all the dessert flavors above mixed together. Another reviewer wrote that this tastes like all of your childhood’s worst nutritional decisions, and I completely agree. This is so dosed with chemically, artificial flavorings that it is almost pleasant. At the very least, this would make for a tasty, sweet mixer. It’s arguably a small step up from the VS and VSOP offerings, but that isn’t saying much.

Vanilla flavor dominates with oaky overtones. Great for very slow sipping at the end of the day.

I like this brandy. I have only had two other brandies in my life before and one was ok and the other was just terrible. The two were Asbach and the other was E & J VS. This brandy is so much better than either of those. The flavor and smoothness were amazing and the price is very nice as well. The nose is sweet fruits like grapes or raisins(I know made from wine) and the color is a nice rich amber and as a nice plus it coats the Glencairn glass nicely. The body is where this humble liquid comes to life. It is lush and smooth with vanilla and dark brown sugar but not caramel or toffee but more like sugar cookies with a lot of really dark brown sugar. The finish was sweet but not syrupy and was really pleasant. Overall this is a very good drink at a great price. It is $13 in my area and it was on sale for $10. I have not made any mixed drinks with this yet but I will shortly. If you need brandy to fill out your bar this is a good contender. Enjoy.