Cognac, Armagnac & Other Grape Spirits

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COGNAC, ARMAGNAC & OTHER GRAPE SPIRITS

Grape spirits can either be made by distilling wine into a brandy or it can be made out of the leftover grape skins after wine production which is distilled into what's called 'pomace brandy'. The most well-known of brandies is the French 'Cognac' but brandies are made all over the world where wines are made. You got French, Italian, Spanish, South African, Mexican, Australian, Swedish, German, American, the list goes on forever. The countries which often are considered the most ‘developed’ and have the longest history when it comes to brandies are France and Spain, therefore these countries will be subject to further reading down below. When it comes to pomace brandies the most well-known is by far the Italian 'Grappa' and to some extent the French 'Marc' but pomace spirits are produced wherever there's a production of wines and brandies. We'll also touch upon the Chilean and Peruvian brandy called Pisco.

France - Cognac & Armagnac

The two most common brandy types in France is Cognac and Armagnac. These two varieties of brandies are geographically protected by French and European law which means other brandies made in France may not be labeled with these names if produced outside the designated areas.

Cognac

Cognac is made out of the grapes called Ugni Blanc, which stands for 95% of the Cognac produced, Folle Blanche and Colombard. The protected area lies north of Bordeaux and is divided into six smaller areas; Grand Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fin Bois, Bon Bois and Bois Ordinaires. From the most central (Grande Champagne) and outwards (in the order stated above) the areas are generally seen as having less and less chalk percentage and therefore also quality of grapes produced.

Small copper stills called 'Charentais' which are heated by naked flames are used to distill Cognac. Before maturation the Cognac, as most other spirits, needs to be reduced in strength. When diluting Cognac before aging it is vitally important to do this slowly over time as the spirit can get soapy flavors and flat aromas if not handled with care. After diluting the spirit Cognac is matured in 350-400 liter barrels made out of the coarse Limousin oak which accelerates aging or Troncais oak which is tighter grained and gives less tannin. Cognac is generally first matured in "new" barrels (which have been used for about 4years) to give tannin and vanillin. After this first period of more intense maturing with “new” barrels, the distiller often moves the spirit to older barrels where it can mature at a slower pace.

On Distilling & Spirits Level 1 www.forbartenders.com 31 Copyright © Noel Ekstrand On the bottles we see different markings instead of the more commonly used number to indicate the age of the youngest spirit of the blend:

*** or VS (Very Special), the youngest part must be at least 2 years.

VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale), the youngest part must be at least 4 years.

Napoléon, the youngest part must be at least 6 years.

XO (Extra Old), the youngest part must be at least 1 0 years

Hors d´ âge, technically these should be at least 1 0 years of age but are in practice often much older.

Fine Champagne, this means that the blend of grapes used to make this Cognac has at least 51 % coming from Grand Champagne and the rest from Petite Champagne.

In addition to these labelling terms you should know that when you come across a bottle with a cru name on the label, 1 00% of the grapes must come from that particular area.

Armagnac

Armagnac is in many ways a spirit with more variety than Cognac. It is also generally more robust and flavorsome which could be the reason why it never gained the same popularity around the world. However, the main reasons for this are probably the more accessible location of Cognac and good old fashioned marketing from the great houses of Cognac.

Apart from this, let's break it down! Armagnac uses 1 2 different grape varieties but with this being said the most common are still Ugni Blanc, Folle Blance, Colombard and Baco 22A. See the resemblance with Cognac? The area of Armagnac is divided into three districts: Bas Armagnac, Tenarèze and Haut-Armagnac, where the first two stand for almost all of the entire production. The spirit is distilled to 52-72% abv in a still which is called 'Alambic Armagnacais' and then generally aged in European oak. So called 'black oak' from the local Monlezun forest as well as other French oaks from Limousin and Troncais are also used.

On Distilling & Spirits Level 1 www.forbartenders.com 32 Copyright © Noel Ekstrand As with Cognac, Armagnac most often also uses the markings rather than numbers to indicate the youngest part of the blend. Note that the markings do not necessarily refer to the same age as with Cognac.

*** or VS (Very Special), the youngest part must be at least 1 years.

VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale), the youngest part must be at least 4 years.

Napoléon, the youngest part must be at least 6 years old.

Hors d´âge or XO (Extra Old), the youngest part must be at least 1 0 years old.

"Age indicated on the label", as an exception to the rule the youngest part of the blend can sometimes be indicated with a number which is common with other spirits.

Vintage simply means that all the contents come from the same year. A vintage must be at least 1 0years old.

Spain

Spain, like any other wine producing country, produces brandy wherever there's a production of wine. Some of the brands have a wide range of distillates and qualities. However the only brandy in Spain which is controlled by law is 'Brandy de Jerez', which is therefore also the only famed Spanish Brandy. Brandy de Jerez does not have any grape variety restrictions but almost all of the brandy is produced on a grape called Arién. Interestingly enough this grape is not grown in Jerez but inland in a region called La Mancha, where most of the distillation also takes place.

Pot stills and column stills are being used to produce three categories of Brandy de Jerez; Holandes (70% abv or less), Aguardientes (70-86% abv) and Destilados (86% abv or higher). To be labeled as Brandy de Jerez the bottled spirit has to be based on at least 50% of 86% abv or less (Holandes or Aguardientes). In addition to this Brandy de Jerez also has to be aged using the solera system in barrels which have been used to previously age Sherry. In contrast to the distillation and where the grapes are grown, the actual aging has to take place in Jerez.

As shortly explained in the chapter featuring maturation of spirits the solera system is a system of barrel aging used most often in the production of Brandy de Jerez (as well as the fortified wine called Sherry and with some specific rums).

The system uses groups of barrels which are of the same age. These groups are called 'criaderas' except for the oldest called 'solera'. When it's time to put the spirit in bottles the distiller uses the spirit from the 'solera' group but without emptying any of the barrels completely. This group of barrels is then topped up with the oldest 'criadera', and that 'criadera' is in turn topped up by the prior stage of aging, and so on until the first stage is topped up with new unaged spirit.

New spirit 2nd Criadera

1 st Criadera

Solera

Spirit withdrawn for bottling

Chilean and Peruvian Pisco

Pisco has its origin in Chile and/or Peru. Naturally the two countries dispute on which country actually was the first, to this day we can't know for sure. The two countries each have their own standards and rules so down below we'll break it down in Chilean Pisco and Peruvian Pisco. The common denominator for Pisco and the biggest difference between Pisco and other grape brandies is the use of aromatic grapes. Most brandies are based on non-aromatic grapes exclusively but Pisco tends to use more aromatic grapes which produce a very floral and perfumed spirit.

Chilean Pisco

In Chile 11 grape varieties are allowed for the production of Pisco. The spirit has to be distilled in pot stills and must be aged on wood, most often the local Rauli but oak is also used, for a minimum of 60 days. Before bottling, as with most spirits, the Chilean Pisco is diluted with water.

On the bottles of Chilean Pisco you will see the following labelling terms:

Corriente/Tradicionel refers to a spirit of at least 30% abv Especial refers to a spirit of at least 35% abv Reservado refers to a spirit of at least 40% abv Gran Pisco refers to a spirit of at least 43% abv

In Peru eight grape varieties are allowed for the production of Pisco. These eight different varieties are grouped into aromatic and non-aromatic grapes. The Peruvian Pisco, as the Chilean, is distilled in pot stills, however Peruvian Pisco is not allowed to be aged on wood or diluted or altered in any way. The distilled strength is the bottling strength. The only requirement is for the Peruvian Pisco to rest for at least three months in a vessel which does not directly affect its content (i.e. glass, stainless steel etc).

Another notable difference between Chilean and Peruvian Pisco is the labelling terms. In Peru they label their Pisco according to which grape is being used:

Pisco Puro refers to a spirit made on a single variety which is also stated on the bottle. Pisco Acholado refers to a spirit based on a blend of grape varieties. Pisco Mosto Verde refers to a spirit made from partially fermented wine. The fermentation is stopped before all the sugars have been converted into alcohol and this is then distilled.

Pomace brandy (Marc & Grappa)

In the category of grape spirits we also have the pomace brandies which are made out of 'vinaccia', the Italian name for fermented grape skins. These spirits are most often a blend but single varietal spirits have become more common. The grapes used are obviously the same grapes as the winemaker uses to produce his/her wines with, as this spirit is based upon the fermented grape skins left over from production of wine. Using black grapes tend to give more interesting aromas and they also produce less methanol. White grapes on the other hand, while producing too much methanol, give acidity and create balance.

Historically these spirits were not aged, not bottled in single varietal examples and mainly distilled in column stills. They were mainly produced by the winemaker for the winemaker. With the rise in popularity these spirits have however become subject to more premium examples with the use of pot stills, aging on wood and bottling of single varietals. By far the biggest exports are the Italian Grappa and the French Marc.

Remember this?

Pomace Brandy Brandy de Jerez Simply put; the leftover grape skins after producing a The only category of Spanish Brandy controlled by law. wine which is fermented and distilled. Marc and Grappa being the two most famed examples. The Solera System A maturing system used in the production of Brandy de Ugni Blanc Jerez, Sherry etc where you use groups of barrels The most common grape used in the production of categorized into 'Criaderas' or ages in which the oldest Cognac and also in the production of Armagnac. 'Criadera' called 'Solera' is used for bottling and then refilled with the younger 'Criadera'. Fine Champagne A Cognac based on at least 51 % grapes grown in Grand Champagne and the rest grown in Petite Champagne.