Grape cultivation in Jerez goes back to the Roman era and the Moors who ruled most of Spain from 711 to 1492 were forbidden by Islam from drinking wine. Contradictorily, grape cultivation continued in Jerez and distillation was introduced in the 10th Century mainly for uses in cosmetics, essences and antiseptics. Is it to note that the word ‘Al-Kohl’ is an Arabic word for the fine powder used in cosmetics which was a by-product of distillation.

As the popularity of Jerez wine, Sherry, grew, the distilled spirit was added to fortify them for export. Soon enough, wine producers realised that this distilled spirit could be used to drink instead of using it to age sherry. This was the beginning of Jerez brandy.

During the 19th Century, a new and important export market with the Netherlands developed. It consisted mainly of selling raw grape spirit aged in old Sherry casks that later became known as “Holandas”. Once in Holland it was either diluted and sold as “burnt wine”, Dutch expression for brandy or it was mixed with other liquors and resold in the market with a different name.

In 1835 the company Gonzalez Byass was founded and in 1844 the first pot stills were made. In 1845 Jerez brandy was first sold and was also the year when a shipment was sent to Ireland. During the next year, Soberano was selected as a brand name due to the close friendship of the Gonzalez family with the monarch from Spain which is “soberano” in Spanish. Its important to note that by the end of the century, the most important export market for Soberano was Britain mainly because of the successful business relationships with agents since 1855.

Today, partly thanks to the increasing number of English people who visit Spain for their holidays each year, brandy sales for this successful company are increasing every year about 10%.

Brandy de Jerez is produced by the sherry manufacturers mostly around the city of Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. Most Brandy de Jerez is actually made from wine produced from all over Spain, mostly from grapes in La Mancha and Extremadura since as the local sherry grapes are too expensive so as to convert them into Brandy.

Today most of the distilling process is done all over Spain using column stills. Then, its delivered to Jerez for aging in used sherry casks for the solera system which is similar to the one used for sherry wine. Solera is large casks each of them holding a somewhat older spirit than the one previous. When brandy is drawn off from the last cask (one third of the volume is taken out) it is refilled with brandy from the next cask in line all the way down the solera line to the first cask in which new brandy is added. This system of refilling the brandy through casks blends together a variety of vintages and this has the result of speeding up of the maturation of the brandy.

Brandy de Jerez Solera must age for a minimum of six months, Reserva for one year and Gran Reserva for a minimum of three years. Actually, the best Reservas and Gran Reservas are aged for 12 to 15 years. The lush, somewhat sweet and fruity found in Brandy de Jerez come from the use of fruit-based flavor concentrates and oak essence.

Distillation is the centuries-old process used to produce alcohol. Heat is used to separate the components of a liquid, or mash, and as vaporization takes place the vapors are cooled so they condense into neutral spirits with little color, aroma, or flavor.

The distiller then blends this neutral spirit with other alcohol or flavorings and may or may not leave it to mature, or age, until the desired flavor and aroma is achieved before bottling. Brandy and clear, colorless grappa are two examples of spirits distilled from wine, which you will find in most standard bar stocks. The following are the best-known distillations from wine produced in countries around the world.

Armagnac
Armagnac is a pale golden, fiery, dry-tasting French brandy. Under French law, only white grapes from the Haut-Armagnac, Tenareze, and Bas-Armagnac regions of Gascony, in southwest France, may be distilled for Armagnac. The distillation takes place after the grape harvest, which occurs between October and April. Unlike cognac, its younger cousin, Armagnac has traditionally been made with only one distillation, but a recent change in legislation means double distillation is now allowed, speeding up the maturation process, which takes place in oak barrels.

Three stars on the label mean it has had at least two years’ maturation; V.S.O.R, at least five years; Napoleon and X.O., at least six years; and Hors d’Age at least 10 years in the barrel. A vintage year on the label indicates the year of the harvest. A vintage Armagnac is never blended.

Brandy
First discovered in the middle of the thirteenth century in France as an attempt to produce a medicinal drink, brandy is now made around the world wherever grapes are grown. After two distillations, the clear, colorless alcohol is given its distinctive nutty brown color and flavor by aging in wood, often oak, barrels. The longer a brandy ages, the more refined its flavor is judged to be. In the United States.

Cognac
Prehaps the best-known brandy in the world, cognac comes from a uprcific area in western France centered around the town of Cognac Hi ihe Charente region. To be labeled as “cognac,” French legislation n|ircifies the brandy can only be made from specific white grapes winch are grown and later distilled within a strictly defined fid’graphical area.

Cognac production is governed by old traditions as well as the laws, so all the brandy is distilled at least twice and then matured in oak barrels for at least two years, during which time it develops its rich, brown color. The end result is 80 proof. Information mi ihe label, also governed by law, explains the maturity of the cognac.

Three stars or VS. means the cognac has been matured in the barrel for at least two years; V.S.O.R, Vieux, V.O, and Reserve Indicate at least four years; V.V.S.O.P and Grande Reserve are (cognacs matured for at least five years; Extra, Napoleon, X.O., Tres eux, and Vieille Reserve are stored for six to 10 years in oak barrels.

Crappa
This clear, Italian spirit, about 80 proof, is distilled from the remains Of the grapes used in wine production, the stems, skins, and pits. Crappa made from white wine is dry and fiery, while that from red wine has a powerful flavor. Although grappa is best known as an Italian spirit, versions of it are made in other countries, such as marc in France.

Marc
This French pomace spirit is distilled from the press residue resulting Irom wine production. Depending on the variety, it either tastes powerful and full flavored (marc de bourgogne) or light, dry, and very soft (marc de champagne). The alcohol content is between 80 and 90 proof. There is a flavor difference between marc made from red-wine and white-wine residues. A small glass of marc, served neat, is aperfect digestive.

Metaxa
The best-known Creek spirit, metaxa is distilled from black grapes. The alcohol content is about 80 proof. Stars on the label tell you how long the liquor was aged. Three stars means three years; five stars, five years; and seven stars, seven years. Bottles labeled as Private Reserve have been matured for at least 20 years, and have the smoothest flavor.

Pisco
This very tangy, colorless brandy is the national drink of Chile, and is the main ingredient in the refreshing cocktail Pisco Sour. Produced from black grapes with a high proportion of muscatel grapes, it is matured in clay casks.

Weinbrand
This German grape brandy, whose name translates as “burned wine,” is distilled using some wines from neighboring countries, but legislation requires up to 85 percent of the final product to be German. It must then be matured for six months in oak casks holding a maximum of 1,000 liters (about 2,600 gallons) each. Old weinbrand must be cellared for a minimum of 12 months.

If it is then at least 76 proof, it will receive an official reference number and can be sold. Like cognac, weinbrand is double distilled. Weinbrand should be served no warmer than room temperature, and is best served in a brandy snifter. If it is a little on the cool side, however, it does not matter because it will quickly attain the correct temperature through heat transferred from the hands.

Primarily applied for drinking and wine trying out, the wine glass denotes to a unique case of glass stemware mass-produced in three defined pieces the bowl, the foot (base), and the stem. The character of wine that one is drinking typically defines the character of wine glass that is expended for the occasion. Pliny the Elder, who was an author, naturalist, and philosopher, is credited with getting the initial referenced composition involving drinking vessels fabricated out of gold and silver in the first century AD.

When gold and silver were given up in favor of the at present modern glass variations, pricing was as extreme as it was for the ones prepared of gold and silver. Enameled goblets from 15th century Europe are the earliest identified subsisting wine glasses from a past era. For the intents of definition, a goblet is any character of wine glasses that feature more than 4 ounces of liquid.

Wine Glass Etiquette

Although it is general noesis to wine aficionados and connoisseurs, most individuals leave out or are unmindful of the fact that there is decided etiquette attached in drinking from wine glasses. Typically, the most dropped aspect of the wine glass is its stem, its design being the containing of the glass. Wine glasses should constantly be curbed by the stem when drinking or savouring the liquid. This forbids the body temperature of the hand from impacting the wine, especially if it has been dished cooled.

Additionally, holding any wine glass by the bowl admits fingermarks and thus deforms the visual aspect of the wine. This is important to remember since a crucial panorama of wine trying demands an interrogation of the wines clearness and color. As Well, when toasting with wine glasses, carrying it by the stem lets peculiar sound to take place from clinking the glasses together. So as you can see, wine glass etiquette is both aesthetical and snappy in nature.

Materials used in the Manufacture of Wine Glasses

There are various schools of idea involved with what materials wine glasses are greatest constructed from. Here are some mentions where that is concerned:

Cut or combined glass are not preferred stuffs to function since they are quick to step in with the wines feeling and frequently induce a common and/or thick lip that causes drinking the wine very bad for some.

Blown glass is a healthier pick of stuff and is taken redeeming by the elementary wine drinker due to a thinner lip.

Lead crystal is the material of option in the more cardinal wine drinking circles, the rewards of which are In The First Place aesthetical. Lead crystal is heavier, has a higher refraction index, and results in an simplicity of workability during the manufacturing form.

The 4 Most Frequent Shapes

Since the measures of wine glass manufacturing is partly grounded in the fragrance (or bouquet) and flavor of the wine, the shape of them is an principal facet. The four most popular shapes or typecasts of wine glasses are:

Champagne flutes

Red Wine glasses

White Wine glasses

Sherry glasses

A. Cognac: Production process:

The production process of cognac involves the following steps:

Harvesting:

Grapes harvesting usually takes place in September, mature grapes are harvested manually or mechanically.

Pressing:

Pressing of grapes is undertaken using horizontal plates, seeds contain a substance which can damage the cognac and therefore are removed.

Fermentation:

The extracted juice is fermented naturally without adding any other substance, the fermentation process takes two to three weeks,

Distillation:

The next step involves distillation of the fermented juice. The distillation process involves boiling the wine to achieve an alcohol level of 28 to 30 %, the resulting product in this first distillation is known as brouillis. The product is then distilled again to achieve a 70% alcohol level and the resulting product is known as Bonne chauffe.

Ageing:

The cognac is then stored in oak casks, it is stored for two years and during this period the tannin from the oak mixes with the cognac and therefore the color of the liquid changes to amber.

Blending:

The process involves changing the quality of the cognac, it involves regular tasting the cognac, adding distilled water, changing oak casks and mixing cognacs of different ages to achieve desired quality.

Packaging and labeling:

After blending the labeling process is undertaken, packaging and labeling changes over time and also will depend on the market, shapes of bottling, the cork and the label style. For example the Asian consumers prefer gold labels.

B. Single barrel bourbon:

Unique process:

The process of producing a single barrel bourbon involves mixing several barrel to achieve a uniform mixture, they are then stored in a warehouse and these barrels are checked regularly, over time the best part of the warehouse produces high quality whiskey and these barrels are allowed to mature for a longer period, when they mature they are bottled one barrel at a time.

C. Single malt Scotch whiskey:

Highlands:

Aberfeldy is a single malt scotch whisky made in the highland region, it was founded in 1896 by John Dewar, 12 years old single malt that has a deep gold color and has a heather honey and Seville orange taste.

(http://www.whisky.com/brands/Aberfeldy_brand.html)

Seaside:

Balvenie:

Balvenie is a single malt whiskey founded by William Grant in 1886, 10 year whiskey and has the following characteristics: it is medium golden straw in color, honey and oak taste traces, smooth and medium dry.

(http://www.whisky.com/brands/Balvenie_brand.html)

Lowlands:

Glenkinchie

Glenkinchie is a single malt whiskey founded by John Cockburn in the year 1825, 12 year old whiskey and has the following characteristics: pale gold color, malted barley taste and a dry finish.

(http://www.whisky.com/brands/Glenkinchie_brand.html)

Islay:

Caol Ila

Caol Ila is a single malt whiskey founded by Hector Henderson in the year 1846, it is age ranges from 12 to 25 years and has the following characteristics: pale straw color, sweet and slight acidity but pleasant taste and has a sweet Smokey finish.

(http://www.whisky.com/brands/caol_ila_brand.html)

Reference:

Cognac France (2009) production process of Cognac, retrieved on 27th November, from http://www.cognac.fr/cognac/_en/2_cognac/index.aspx?page=assemblage

Scotch Whiskey Association (2009) Single malt scotch whiskey and Single barrel bourbon, retrieved on 27th November, from http://www.scotch-whisky.org.uk/

Whiskey (2009) Whiskey brands, retrieved on 27th November, from http://www.whisky.com/brands

Brandy glasses, or brandy snifters, are a very unique type of glass that many people recognize, but surprisingly very few people actually own. Most people when they drink brandy will use small and short glasses, but the problem with this is that these glasses do not work as well when you are drinking brandy. Brandy glassware are very unique and they are made in a specific way in order to maximize the brandy drinking experience.

A brandy glass, snifter, or balloon, has a unique look and it is more a form of stemware than a glass itself. The reason for this is that brandy glassware are short-stemmed, and there is a wide vessel that opens quite wide at the bottom but narrows at the top. There is a reason for this because of the drink brandy.

The large surface area of the brandy glass helps the brandy evaporate within the glass. The narrow top on top of the brandy glassware then traps in the aroma within the glass.

The reason for the short stem and wide bottom of the brandy glassware is that the glass is supposed to be cupped within your hand and this warms up the brandy for you because of the heat from your hand.

You can find several types of brandy glassware online for very low prices. It is important that you look online for brandy glasses because it will allow you to not only get cheap prices, but also get a variety of styles. While brandy glassware have one clear form, they do come in different styles and even different colors.

One of the most important things about getting brandy glasses, from a business perspective, is that you want to be able to put your company name and logo on the brandy glass so you can advertise your company to your customers through promotional brandy glassware.

You can even go the extra mile and provide your customers with personalized brandy glasses that help set you apart as a business that truly appreciates customers and your customer will become loyal as a result.

When you want to give your customers a unique type of promotional gift, go for brandy glasses. They are very beautiful glasses and they are better promotional gifts than things like pens, mugs and hats.

With brandy glasses, you can show your customers you appreciate them with these wonderful glasses.

Brandy and Cognac are traditionally associated with after dinner drinks or for having a quick snifter of when going out hunting or on a brisk walk. Brandy was also seen as being medicinal in the past because of its warming qualities – think St Bernard dogs finding victims of avalanches. In fact it is a drink that has lots of past associations but of late has had a bit of a development in its image. Brandy and Cognac in fact were going through a drought – whisky was the drink to be seen with and Cognac producers in France were destroying their vines because their product was just not selling. However this has all changed now. Brandy and Cognac, especially the more expensive label cognac, are now associated with rap stars. It has been assimilated into black music by the likes of Busta Rhymes and Jay-Z. Brandy or Cognac is often name checked in songs such as Busta Rhymes’s raunchy “Pass the Courvoisier”. The drink rivals sex, drugs and guns as a staple subject for rap lyrics and titles. Hennessy seems to be the drink of choice but all the other brand names get a mention too. The best cognacs are also particularly prized today, by an even more unlikely clientele, the clientele of the nightclubs of Moscow.

In fact cognac sales in America increased 6.7 per cent last year. They have trebled in 10 years and now account for 36 per cent of all world sales. After years of decline, cognac is also booming in urban France, where the young drink it long with tonic or mineral water.

So what is Cognac and what is the difference between Brandy and Cognac?

Cognac is a type of brandy – it is called cognac due to the region of France where it originates but has to go through a host of processes before it can actually be called by the name cognac.

Brandy is made by distilling wine. The wine that is used for the production of brandy is acidic thin wine which goes through a double distilling process – the resulting spirit is colourless ans has an alcohol contact of about 70%.

Brandy was originally known as Brandywine and it can be made from grapes or other fruits – think apricot or cherry brandy. The colour of the brandy id usually made by either aging the spirit in casks or by adding a colourant to imitate the process.

Cognac however is a different beast – produced by a simialr process it can’t be sold or even called cognac until it has been aged for two years. The cognac is produuced by blending different mixtures of the aged spirit and the age of the final product depends on the age of the youngest distillate that has been used in the mixture.

Other Brandies from around the world

Greece produces pot-distilled Brandies, many of which, such as the well-known Metaxa, are flavored with Muscat wine, anise, or other spices. Winemaking in Israel is a well-established tradition dating back thousands of years. But Brandy production dates back only to the 1880s when the French Jewish philanthropist Baron Edmond de Rothschild established what has become the modern Israeli wine industry along French lines. Israeli brandy is made in the manner of Cognac from Colombard grapes, with distillation in both pot and column stills and maturation in French Limousin oak casks.

In the Caucasus region, along the eastern shore of the Black Sea, the ancient nations of Georgia and Armenia draw on monastic traditions to produce rich, intensely flavored pot still Brandies both from local grapes and from such imported varieties as Muscadine (from France), Sercial and Verdelho (most famously from Madeira).

South Africa has produced Brandies since the arrival of the first Dutch settlers in the 17th century, but these early spirits from the Cape Colony earned a reputation for being harsh firewater (witblits, white lightning, was a typical nickname). The introduction of modern production techniques and government regulations in the early 20th century gradually led to an improvement in the quality of local Brandies. Modern South African Brandies are made from Ugni Blanc, Colombard, Chenin Blanc, and Palomino grapes, produced in both pot and column stills, and aged for a minimum of three years in oak.

Apple and Other Fruit Brandies

Normandy is one of the few regions in France that does not have a substantial grape wine industry. Instead it is apple country, with a substantial tradition of producing hard and sweet cider that in turn can be distilled into an Apple Brandy known as Calvados. The local cider apples, which tend to be small and tart, are closer in type to crab apples than to modern table apples. This spirit has its own appellations, with the best brands coming from Appellation Controlee Pays d’Auge near the Atlantic seaport of Deauville, and the rest in 10 adjacent regions that are designated Appellation Reglementee.

Most Pays d’Auge and some of the better Appellation Reglementee are produced in pot stills. All varieties of Calvados are aged in oak casks for a minimum of two years. Cognac-style quality and age terms such as V.S.O.P. and Hors d’Age are frequently used on labels, but have no legal meaning. In the United States, Applejack, as Apple Brandy is called locally, is thought by many to be the first spirit produced in the British colonies. This colonial tradition has continued on the East Coast with the Laird’s Distillery in New Jersey (established in 1780 and the oldest distillery in America). Apple Brandies that are more like eau-de-vie are produced in California and Oregon.

The fruit-growing regions of the upper Rhine River are the prime eau-de-vie production areas of Europe. The Black Forest region of Bavaria in Germany, and Alsace in France, are known for their Cherry Brandies (Kir in France, Kirschwasser in Germany), Raspberry Brandies (Framboise and Himbeergeist), and Pear Brandies (Poire). Similar eaux-de-vies are now being produced in the United States in California and Oregon. Some Plum Brandy is also made in these regions (Mirabelle from France is an example), but the best known type of Plum Brandy is Slivovitz, which is made from the small blue Sljiva plum throughout Eastern Europe and the Balkans.

Source: Tastings.com

United States Brandies

Brandy production in California dates back to the Spanish missions in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In the years following the Civil War, Brandy became a major industry, with a substantial export trade to Europe by the end of the century. For a time Leland Stanford, founder of Stanford University, was the worlds largest brandy producer. Phylloxera and National Prohibition almost shut down the industry in the 1920s.

Repeal started things up again, but as with the bourbon industry, the advent of World War II resulted in the brandy producers further marking time. Soon after the end of the war the industry commissioned the Department of Viticulture and Oenology at the University of California at Davis to develop a prototype “California-style” brandy. It had a clean palate, was lighter in style than most European Brandies, and had a flavor profile that made it a good mixer. Starting in the late 1940s, the California brandy producers began to change over to this new style.

Contemporary California Brandies are made primarily in column stills from table grape varieties such as the Thompson Seedless and Flame Tokay, although a handful of small new-generation Cognac-inspired pot distillers, such as Jepson and RMS, are using the classic Ugni Blanc, Colombard, and Folle Blanche grapes. California Brandies are aged for two to 12 years in used American oak (both Brandy and Bourbon casks) to limit woodiness in the palate, although the pot distillers also use French oak. Several California distillers, most notably Korbel, have utilized the Spanish solera method of maturing their Brandy. California Brandies do not use quality designations such as V.S.O.P. or stars. The more expensive brands will usually contain a percentage of older vintages and pot-distilled Brandies in the blend.

Latin American Brandies
In Mexico a surprising amount of wine is made, but it is little known outside of the country because most of it is used for Brandy production. Mexican Brandies are made from a mix of grapes, including Thompson Seedless, Palomino, and Ugni Blanc. Both column and pot stills are used in production whereas the solera system is generally used for aging. Brandy now outsells tequila and rum in Mexico. South American Brandies are generally confined to their domestic markets. The best known type is Pisco, a clear, raw Brandy from Peru and Chile that is made from Muscat grapes and double-distilled in pot stills. The resulting Brandy has a perfumed fragrance and serves as the base for a variety of mixed drinks, including the famous Pisco Sour.

source: tastings.com

Pomace Brandies : Getting to grips with Grappa

Italy produces a substantial amount of Grappa, both of the raw, firewater variety and the more elegant, artisanal efforts that are made from one designated grape type and frequently packaged in hand-blown bottles. Both types of Grappa can be unaged or aged for a few years in old casks that will tame the hard edge of the spirit without imparting much flavor or color. Marc from France is produced in all of the nations wine-producing regions, but is mostly consumed locally. Marc de gewürztraminer from Alsace is particularly noteworthy because it retains some of the distinctive perfumed nose and spicy character of the grape. California pomace Brandies from the United States are broadly in the Italian style and are usually called Grappas, even when they are made from non-Italian grape varieties. This is also true of the pomace Brandies from Canada.

German Brandies

German monks were distilling Brandy by the 14th century and the German distillers had organized their own guild as early as 1588. Yet almost from the start, German Brandy (called weinbrand ) has been made from imported wine rather than the more valuable local varieties. Most German Brandies are produced in pot stills and must be aged for a minimum of six months in oak. Brandies that have been aged in oak for at least one year are called uralt or alter (meaning “older”). The best German Brandies are smooth, somewhat lighter than Cognac, and finish with a touch of sweetness.

source:tastings.com

Spanish Brandies

Brandy de Jerez is made by the Sherry houses centered around the city of Jerez de la Frontera in the southwest corner of Spain. Virtually all Brandy de Jerez; however, is made from wines produced elsewhere in Spain — primarily from the Airen grape in La Mancha and Extremadura — as the local Sherry grapes are too valuable to divert into Brandy production. Nowadays most of the distilling is likewise done elsewhere in Spain using column stills. It is then shipped to Jerez for aging in used Sherry casks in a solera system similar to that used for Sherry wine. A solera is a series of large casks (called butts), each holding a slightly older spirit than the previous one beside it. When brandy is drawn off (racked) from the last butt (no more than a third of the volume is removed) it is replenished with brandy drawn from the next butt in line all the way down the solera line to the first butt, where newly distilled brandy is added. This system of racking the brandy through a series of casks blends together a variety of vintages (some soleras have over 30 stages) and results in a speeding up of the maturation process. Basic Brandy de Jerez Solera must age for a minimum of six months, Reserva for one year and Gran Reserva for a minimum of three years. In practice, the best Reservas and Gran Reservas are frequently aged for 12 to 15 years. The lush, slightly sweet and fruity notes to be found in Brandy de Jerez come not only from aging in Sherry casks, but also from the judicious use of fruit-based flavor concentrates and oak essence (boise).

Penedès Brandy comes from the Penedès region of Catalonia in the northeast corner of Spain near Barcelona. Modeled after the Cognacs of France and made from a mix of regional grapes and locally-grown Ugni Blanc of Cognac, it is distilled in pot stills. One of the two local producers (Torres) ages in soleras consisting of butts made from French Limousin oak, whereas the other (Mascaro) ages in the standard non-solera manner, but also in Limousin oak. The resulting Brandy is heartier than Cognac, but leaner and drier than Brandy de Jerez.

Italian Brandies

Italy has a long history of Brandy production dating back to at least the 16th century, but unlike Spain or France there are no specific Brandy-producing regions. Italian Brandies are made from regional wine grapes, and most are produced in column stills, although there are now a number of small artisanal producers using pot stills. They are aged in oak for a minimum of one to two years, with six to eight years being the industry average. Italian Brandies tend to be on the light and delicate side with a touch of residual sweetness.

source: tastings.com