Alumni event: Cognac & Cigars

On Monday, 19 November 2018, the FELU Alumni organised for its members the “Alumni Gourmet: Martell Cognac & Cigars” event in the Sveti Florijan restaurant on Gornji trg in Ljubljana. Slovenians love to brag about their wines but tend to neglect spirits, even if, as the keynote speaker told us, we have a lot of potential in this area. Such events are not only an opportunity to learn about new themes and topics but also bring together people from different areas and of different ages, which makes them ideal for networking.

The event was hosted by Ms Majda Debevc whose acknowledgements include a licence for Level 1 Sommelier, a certificate for spirits, an honorary title awarded by the Scottish Whisky Association and life membership of the Order of Knights of Whisky. Ms Debevc undoubtedly deserves all the titles mentioned above and more, as she dazzled everybody with her boundless knowledge. During the event, but even more so afterwards, she was flooded with questions concerning not only the main topic of the evening – cognac, but also spirits in general.

The recurring thought of the event was education on the cultural drinking of alcohol, which unfortunately is something Slovenia lacks. Ms Debevc emphasised that a glass of cognac can be enjoyed over the course of several hours, if one knows how to drink it properly.

The meeting’s highlight was one of the four most prominent cellars that is situated near the French town Cognac and produces the Martell cognac. Most likely you have already heard about the other three, too – Hennessy, Remy Martin and Courvoisier.  There are many more cognac producers in the world, but according to Ms Debevc only the four mentioned have cellars that are sufficiently big to guarantee a consistent taste to their customers.

Uroš Konda, EFnews

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