VUE

@donnamodanj 68 Westwood Ave, Westwood NJ 07675 201.594.0900 • info@donnamodanj.com kind quality down to the soil, vines and grapes. I was fortunate enough to meet Cyril once again in 2017, this time at Hoboken's Bin 14, where he made it abundantly clear that Camus is making its way to the U.S. And of course nothing could've spoken to this more than a Camus cognac cocktail decorating the top of the drink menu. The aptly named "Between the Sheets" cocktail was made with Camus Elegance, Brugal Blanco, Triple sec and lemon—it went down smooth (and fast). "Cocktails bring new consumers," Cyril told me as I ate the chorizo off my kale salad. "It opens up to people who don't generally drink spirits neat, those folks are actually in the minority. To make a good cocktail, you need very good ingredients and cognac fits into that. It's not cheapening the product, quite the opposite actually. It has had an impact. Cocktail culture is looking for niche ingredients, niche is good, crafted niche is what we can offer." Overall, cognac sales in the U.S. are beginning to boom. And with the resurgence of cocktail culture in the last few years, the mixed drinks are driving more sales—in nightclubs and cocktail bars alike. And while some would assume cognacs—particularly from the fifth largest cognac house—would be too hefty for cocktails, it simply isn't the case. "It's hard to recruit new people to cognac. In the '80s and '90s, some consumers and houses went for very heavy, oaky, cognacs. Those were what people were drinking in nightclubs—it even worked as a make- your-own. But people are moving on from this and growing into something more elaborate," Cyril said. "Ultimately, Camus is a much better fit for cocktail culture. There is no convincing a good mixologist that your product is right. They make up their own mind, and thankfully they pick up on Camus very well." Camus itself was founded in 1863 by Cyril's great great grandfather, and though that literally is several lifetimes ago, the fifth largest cognac house in the world is still the youngest when compared to houses like Remy Martin or Martell. "We're like the new kids, we're still playing catch up," he told me with a smile. But Cyril and his family have differentiated themselves from the other houses in more than a couple ways throughout history, and it dates back to their very origins. For one, Camus is the largest family-owned cognac house in the world—Cyril himself was 32 when he first took over the family business. And while many other large cognac houses made their bones as merchants who would buy cognac from winegrowers, blend it and sell it, Camus were winegrowers—and they still are. V U E N J . C O M 97

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