This is the Costco house brand. Served neat in a glencairn from a freshly opened bottle. I compared it sbs w/ Remy Martin 1738. If the Kirkland doesn't beat the RM then there's no reason to buy it. Shockingly the Remy pours a darker color. Almost a dark raw honey. The Kirkland has a more complex nose, though. Sweet marzipan and slight old leather notes but nothing more specific. Tasting this - at first I note this faint wisp of menthol. My mind flashes to Vicks Vapo-Rub. Seriously. It's not horrible, but its not expected either. Weird. Its not like its the only note, but its what I noticed first. It has a sweet wine note, grapes, barrel wood. The Vicks impression fades as the liquor oxidizes, but its still there after about 15 minutes. My first imprssion is that the RM 1738 is significantly better. Creamier, richer and with more depth of flavor. The Kirkland is, by comparison, thin and offers up traces of menthol, barrel wood and other "stuff". It does get better with some air. I'll revisit this after the bottle has a chance to "settle in". I think this is going to be a mixer as it really doesn't match my expectations. I was told (by someone who's opinion I won't trust again) that the Kirkland XO was a "great" cognac at a very competitive price and that it was "as good as" Hennessy XO. Uhm.... NO. It's not. Right now, I"m not impressed. For the money this is a no brainer - it will be a hard pass. The Kirkland doesn't suck, but its not (NOT) better than the Remy Martin 1738, and a damned far cry from the Hennessy. I guess you get what you pay for.