Everything about cognac

Everything you wanted to know about cognac, but were afraid to ask

The town of Cognac (France), with the population of only about 20 thousand people, is known throughout the world thanks to the eponymous drink.

The drink called Cognac can only be produced in the same region, which is divided into 6 regions. Grapes grown in each of them are different in properties and taste.

The brandy we buy in shops, usually consists of several different types of cognac of different aging periods from different areas. The most "cool" areas are considered Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne and Borderies. The word Champagne means limestone and has no relation to the Champagne region, where French champagne is produced.

In one of the cognac houses in the museum there are samples of soils of some regions. They differ even visually. For example, brandy made ​​from grapes harvested in the Grand Champagne, has a mild, delicate flavor with dominant floral tones. Soils of Borderies contain a large percentage of clay and silica. Excellent smooth and soft cognac with pronounced notes of violets is produced from the local vines.

In recent years, whiskey consumption is growing very rapidly in the world. Young people drink a lot of cocktails based on it. It haunts producers of cognac. They have even begun to produce a variety of liqueurs based on cognac, which are drunk chilled. Another example - Canadian cider which is produced by Maison Camus.

The biggest surprise is the fact that the French, for the sake of increasing the sales, changed all their principles. Now, you don't have to drink cognac at a room temperature and in its pure form. All cognac houses now offer cognac-based cocktails. The idea is to offer the market a better quality cocktails with alcohol better than whiskey. Therefore, cognac has been mixed with tonic and, moreover, lemon was added to it, which was  previously  considered by the French as bad manners.

Young cognacs VS or V.S.O.P. are recommended for cocktails. Aged cognacs X.O. and older are still offered to drink undiluted. The cognac itself can be now served frozen.

Cognac Based Cocktail Summit

• A quarter of a lime
• 4 thin slices of ginger
• A long piece of cucumber peel
• 60 ml (2 oz.) cognac
• 120 ml (4 oz.) lemonade
• 4-5 ice cubes

Until recently, the traditional cognac glass was considered a "snifter" or spherical glass,

Snifter

narrowed to the top, with a large bowl and a short stem. Holding the glass in the palm of your hand, you were warming the cognac and enjoying its flavors.

Tulip

Now things have changed and a more traditional glass is considered a "tulip" or a glass bowl with a closed tulip bud on a high leg. This glass is held by the stem or base as a glass of wine. The cognac is rotated along the walls of the glass, allowing it to actively "breathe" oxygen, and the flavors of cognac are enjoyed through the narrow top of the glass.

(from Все что вы хотели знать о коньяке, но боялись спросить)

What's the difference between brandy, cognac, and armagnac?

Pronunciations: cognac, brandy, armagnac

Cognac and Armagnac are subsets of brandy. That is, they are a type of brandy, produced in specific parts of France, Cognac and Armagnac.

In all cases, brandies are, essentially, distilled wine and then stored in casks to add different flavors to the brandy. The rumored story of brandy creation is that Dutch merchants were charged by volume to import wine. In order to pay smaller taxes, they distilled their wine, thus lowering their tax burden. The intention was to later add water in order to volumize the distillation back into wine. But, found that the distilled product, shipped in oak casks was pretty good on its own.

Armagnac is in Southwest France. It is, literally, at the bottom left of France, as you look at a map.

The invention of the drink is attributed to Arnaud de Villeneuve, a supposed alchemist who died in 1311. Armagnac is aged in oak barrels somewhere between 4 and 20 years. Older Armagnac is more amber-colored and less alcoholic.

Cognac is in the western part of France, near the middle, but, on the Atlantic coast, just south of Brittany. Cognac became a financial success as a region because several evaporative salt fields were located there. Cognac received the right to trade salt by Francis I in the late 1400s. Money from the salt trade led to finances for building wineries, and, later, cognac.

By law, cognac must be composed of 90% Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche or Colombard grapes. It must also be distilled twice in copper pot stills and aged for at least two years in French oak barrels that were manufactured in either Limousin or Tronçais. Yes, they're very particular.

V.S. cognac means Very Special, and assumes at least 2 years in a cask

V.S.O.P. cognac means Very Special Old Pale, and assumes at least 4 years in a cask

X.O. cognac means Extra Old, and assumes at least 6 years in a cask

(by Jeb Bolding, Cognac Examiner)

For more information:

• ABC of Cognac
• How to taste Cognac
• Deciphering Cognac Labels
• Difference Between Brandy and Cognac
• Difference between Cognac and Armagnac

Cognac, brandy in different languages