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Looking for an updated Paul Masson price guide? This guide will help you out.
These days there are so many options for everything. There are a million streaming channels, a million kinds of cereal, a million coffee shops, and a million kinds of liquor.
Just take a stroll down the liquor aisle in your local grocery store or liquor store. Bottles and more bottles as far as the eye can see. It can be very overwhelming.
This wasn’t the case a long time ago, and even a few decades ago. It’s tempting to always go for the newest thing, but that logic can be flawed. Paul Masson Brandy has been on the shelf for your whole life.
It’s a fine-looking bottle, but it isn’t flashy. It’s not adorned with jewels and they don’t have a well-known hip-hop artist promoting them at the club and on tv.
Sometimes the things with staying power are still around after many years for a reason. Paul Masson Brandy is one of those things that has staying power, and for good reason.
Paul Masson Brandy is the consistent, smooth, affordable brandy you need in your life.
A Brief History of Paul Masson Brandy
If you were a mad scientist trying to create the perfect person to formulate your brandy, you might come up with someone just like the real-life Paul Masson.
Paul Masson was born in Burgundy, France, but moved to California as a teenager. As a young adult, he went back and forth between France and California before settling in Northern California.
Along the way, he became a viticulturist, which is a fancy way to say that he became a master of grapes. He became an expert at cultivating grapes, making wine, and making brandy.
Paul Masson Brandy has changed hands many times since the 1800s. After Paul Masson’s death in the 1940s, the brand first went to the Seagram Company.
After that Paul Masson was under the umbrella of Vintners International, Constellation Brands, and finally, Sazerac Company, Inc.
Sazerac Company is known for producing such first-rate brands as Buffalo Trace Whiskey, Sazerac de Forge Cognac, and Eagle Rare Bourbon.
There’s been a lot of talk about grapes and brandy, but isn’t wine usually the result of fermenting grapes? Grapes are the starting point for both wine and brandy. Brandy is actually a liquor that is made by distilling wine.
A very simple way to think of the brandy-making process is to harvest grapes, make wine, distill wine, age the resulting alcohol in oak casks, and blend the brandy for the preferred mixture.
A couple of things to mention is that the wine used to make brandy is not the typical wine that is enjoyed on its own. It is specifically formulated for brandy making.
Also, the distilled wine before being aged has a very fun name. It’s called eau de vie, which means water of life. Paul Masson Brandy is a golden brown color.
The classic (non-flavored) Paul Masson Brandies are known for having a sweet, oaky, and smooth flavor. The flavored brandies retain the smooth characteristics but add sweetness from the fruit adjuncts.
Paul Masson Prices, Variations & Sizes
The Paul Masson Brandy collection has a nice range of brandy varietals that should appease even the pickiest drinker. The Paul Masson Brandy options can be divided into Classics and Exciting Flavors.
Traditional brandy is designated with a grade or rating that lets the consumer know how long the brandy has been aged. The age is also determined by the age of the youngest brandy in the blend.
VS stands for Very Special and it indicates that the youngest brandy in the blend has been aged for at least two years.
VSOP stands for Very Superior Old Pale and it indicates that the youngest brandy in the blend has been aged for at least four years.
XO stands for Extra Old and this is a blend where the youngest brandy has been aged for at least six years.
The price customarily goes up as the length of aging goes up. You would expect that a VSOP would cost more than a VS.
| Type | Proof | ABV | Size | Average Price |
| Paul Masson VS Grande Amber Brandy | 80 | 40% | 375 ml | From $5.99 |
| 750 ml | From $11.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $19.99 | |||
| Paul Masson VSOP Brandy | 80 | 40% | 375 ml | From $7.99 |
| 750 ml | From $14.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $23.99 | |||
| Paul Masson Grande Amber Mango | 54 | 27% | 375 ml | From $5.99 |
| 750 ml | From $11.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $19.99 | |||
| Paul Masson Grande Amber Apple | 54 | 27% | 375 ml | From $5.99 |
| 750 ml | From $11.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $19.99 | |||
| Paul Masson Grande Amber Pineapple | 54 | 27% | 375 ml | From $5.99 |
| 750 ml | From $11.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $19.99 | |||
| Paul Masson Grande Amber Peach | 54 | 27% | 375 ml | From $5.99 |
| 750 ml | From $11.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $19.99 | |||
| Paul Masson Grande Amber Red Berry | 54 | 27% | 375 ml | From $5.99 |
| 750 ml | From $11.99 | |||
| 1.75 L | From $19.99 |
Paul Masson Brandy Alternatives and Comparisons
Paul Masson Brandy is high quality but very affordable. There are two other major brandy brands that fit this description. They also all offer similar product lines with flavored and non-flavored brandy at reasonable prices.
The two others are Christian Brothers Brandy and E&J Brandy. E&J Brandy has an XO (Extra Old) variety in case you’re looking for a brandy with a bit more age to it.
If you’re not able to find a bottle of Paul Masson and you decide you want to splurge on the replacement why not try Hennessey or Courvoisier.
Hennessey and Courvoisier are both technically cognacs which is brandy from a specific region in France. They still taste smooth, they’re still made from grapes, but they’ll cost you two to three times what you’ll pay for Paul Masson Brandy.
How to Drink Paul Masson Brandy
Paul Masson Brandy can be enjoyed neat, with a drop of water, over ice, or as the base for an amazing brandy cocktail. Usually the more age on a brandy the more enjoyable it will be when consumed straight-up.
If you are having it neat it’s best in a brandy snifter. The brandy snifter allows you to warm the liquid with your hand and appreciate the aroma thanks to the shape of the glass.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is Paul Masson Brandy gluten-free?
Yes, Paul Masson Brandy is gluten-free. Grapes don’t contain gluten and the distillation process used to make liquor would remove any gluten anyway.
2. Is Paul Masson Brandy vegan?
Yes, Paul Masson Brandy is vegan. This may seem like a silly question but there are some liquors that use animal byproducts as part of the filtering or distillation process. Thankfully for vegetarians and vegans that is not the case here.
3. What cocktails can I make with Paul Masson Brandy?
Cola Nut
- 1 ½ Parts Paul Masson Brandy
- ½ Part Amaretto
- ½ Part 99 Cherries Liqueur
- 2 Parts Cola
- Combine all ingredients in a highball glass filled with ice. Stir well and serve.
Classic Metropolitan Brandy Cocktail
- 2 oz Paul Masson VS or VSOP Brandy
- 1 oz Sweet Vermouth
- ½ Teaspoon Simple Syrup
- 2 Dashes Aromatic Bitters
- Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well, strain into a cocktail glass, and serve.
Sidecar
- 2 oz Paul Masson VS Brandy
- 1 oz Triple Sec
- ¾ oz Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
- 1 Lemon or Orange Twist (For Garnish)
- Add liquid ingredients to an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake, strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with a twist.
Interesting Facts & Myths
The contrast between so-called “new and hip” brandy and the classic Paul Masson Brandy is very apparent when discussing former spokespeople.
The most well-known Paul Masson marketing campaign from the late 1970s and early 1980s featured director and actor Orson Welles.
Not to say that Orson Wells isn’t cool, he is responsible for Citizen Kane after all, but he brings to mind the old-school brandy drinker enjoying a snifter in the den with friends.
