I am new to drinking Brandy and am on a budget, so buy affordable brands. I recently tried Paul Mason and Christian Brothers. I thought these two were very close in flavor. I had rest of PM before opening up CB and trying a sip, as I wanted to compare. Of these two, I thought Paul Mason was better. I started watching reviews, reading reviews also. Paul Mason (French) got consistently good reviews. I read reviews of E&J VSOP, which were not good, most pretty poor. But I decided to try it anyway, to judge for myself. I would have to agree, it is not good, very artificial flavor, almost a sickening strong flavor. I do have Horchata cinnamon rice milk, so will add to the this brandy. I will not buy E&J VSOP again. I will go back to buying Paul Mason, that is my favorite.