Armenian brandy

hi guys:

i’ve read ARARAT brand brandy (from the yerevan brandy co.) is tasty and a good value.
has anyone SEEN this around town?

yes, i know where i COULD look for such a thing, and i know i’m being a dick, but
has anyone actually seen it for sale (not that it’s rare) anywhere in l.a., burbank, glendale, etc.?

thank you.

Mission Wine and Spirits carries it.

Looks like K&L carries. 3y, 10y, 20y & Churchill’s favorite Dvin.

found it at the lliquor spot in glendale. seems to be rather readily
available in your armenian type nabes.

many thanks to you all for the help.

Please report back after you try it. Thanks

Which one did you pick up?

a little early in the day, but taking one for the team…

i bought the seven year for around 23 bucks, which seems a steal for something that age.

it’s very smooth – only eighty proof – and a little sweet but pretty darn good for that price. even
though this is seven years old, i think it would be better in cocktails than alone, but then again,
it might go just fine with your post prandial cigar or with a little water or soda to sip all day.
it does have a touch of complexity about it.
i’d say its a good value.

i’ve been drinking armagnac in the brandy realm the past few years, so this is much less
dry and less…spicy.

can you tell i’m no expert?

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@linus may be of interest, K&L running a sale on cognac they recently started carrying

  • 2002 Hine K&L Exclusive “Genté” Single Barrel Cognac (750ml) (Previously 160) $89.99
  • 2006 Hine K&L Exclusive “Lignières-Sonneville” Single Barrel Cognac (750ml) (Previously $140) $79.99

Armenian here. I mainly drink Armagnac when I want a brandy. It’s basically common knowledge that there’s no real deal Armenian brandy on the market so nobody buys it. Every Armenian I know either has it brought over from the motherland or drinks Hennessy here.

Our brandies are a thing of beauty but the distro is rife with counterfeit supply and fake labels.

Sorry cant be more of help.

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sgee:

thanks for the update. i’m on k and l’s list for stuff like that but i appreciate it.

nemroz:

wow, you learn something new every day. sad to hear. i hope you’ll let the board know
if there’s any “real deal” armenian stuff for sale around these parts.

it’s crazy… anyone I talk to says the same thing… i have to talk to some Armenian liquor store owners… that’s our only hope… i really love our brandies… they’re crazy fruity

the Booze Traveler - Armenia episode was fascinating for me

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Jon’s Marketplace in Glendale must certainly have it.

Jon’s everywhere has it. They’re the number one culprit of selling fake brandy

You mean fake “cognac,” don’t you?

No. They’re putting shit brandy into labels that are supposed to have good brandy. Those stars used to have meaning

Interesting. That’s serious fraud. Do you have any proof about that? It’s hard to imagine that a small retail chain like Jon’s would have the capacity or criminal will to do such a thing. On a side note, I have an indelible image of the bartender at Empress Pavilion a few years ago pouring Smirnoff into a mostly empty bottle of a much pricier vodka. Did it in plain site of anyone who cared to watch.

I don’t know if that’s serious fraud. To say something is great and aged and then to deliver something that’s not great and not aged. What kind of laws are there against that?

The % of bars who do what you described is ridiculously high.

It’s not Jon’s thats doing it, though they are buying the product. There are uhm ‘private organizations’ based in Hollywood and Glendale who traffic in such things. As far as proof…

yes, i said they sell it, not make it.

remedy is armenian I think and it’s a huge liquor store.