Raison Personnelle XO 6.0 Grande Champagne Cognac

Raison Personnelle XO 6.0 Grande Champagne Cognac

Raison Personnelle is the work of Sabine and Bertrand de Witasse, who farm around twenty hectares of Ugni Blanc on the slopes around the church of Angeac-Champagne, in Grande Champagne. They distil on two Charentais copper stills built in 1935, one of them fired by wood, and bottle roughly one cask at a time, fewer than 600 bottles a year, each one hand numbered. The 6.0 is an XO assemblage, 100% Grande Champagne and 100% distilled over a wood fire.

It is built from eaux-de-vie distilled in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, bottled in 2026 at 41.5% vol. Where the 5.1 is round and spiced, the 6.0 is powerful and floral, with the English confectionery note the house associates with these younger vintages. For the background on Sabine and Bertrand, read our introduction to the house.

This is the newest release from the estate and the first bottling of the 6 series. Fewer than 600 bottles were filled, hand numbered, and there will be no second run.

Presentation of the bottle

A tall, straight-sided clear bottle with a short neck and a natural wood cap. The label is screen printed straight onto the glass in orange: COGNAC set vertically, a line drawing of a Charentais house with a bunch of grapes, then RAISON PERSONNELLE and the line Appellation Cognac Grande Champagne Contrôlée. A small white band around the neck carries the house name and the number of the assemblage, here 6.0. The producer’s own text runs in small print at the foot of the bottle.

How to drink

Serve neat in a tulip glass at room temperature, after a meal. Sabine de Witasse pours it alongside chocolate desserts, and the house also drinks it as an aperitif over ice in summer. No water is needed at this strength.