Wine made from other fruits in the same way will often be preceded by the name of the fruit raw material to distinguish its types. For example, brandy made of cherries is called cherry brandy, and calvados made of apples is called calvados.
There are many countries producing brandy in the world, but the brandy produced in France is the most famous. Among the brandies made in France, cognac is the most popular. It is a kind of grape brandy, distilled in a copper distiller in Cognac, France, and sealed and aged in French oak barrels for 2 years.
So cognac belongs to brandy, but brandy is not necessarily cognac. In France, there are two major brandy producing areas-Cognac and Yawenyi. What's the difference between them?
Cognac vs Armagnac Location: opposite Bordeaux. Cognac production area is located in the north of Bordeaux near the sea, with cool climate and calcareous soil. Armagnac is located in the south of Bordeaux, which makes its climate relatively warm inland, and the soil is mainly sandy.
The distillation process is different: most cognac will be distilled twice with the traditional copper pot distiller until the alcohol content reaches 72.4% ABV. In Armagnac, column distillers are often used for distillation for 65,438+0 times, and distillation is usually stopped when the alcohol content reaches 52% ABV, but some wineries in Armagnac also use cognac producing areas for distillation.
The use of barrels is different: Cognac production areas prefer to use oak barrels in Limousin or Tronche production areas, and its regulations require at least 2 years of barrel age. Armagnac prefers Monlezun oak barrels, and there is no minimum age limit.
Different flavors: Due to the differences in local conditions, distillation process and aging, different flavors are bound to be created. Generally speaking, the aroma of cognac is more delicate, with floral, fruity and nutty aromas, and the taste is softer, lighter and rounder. Armagnac's flavor is more complex and rich, often with the aroma of nuts, caramel, vanilla and apricots, and the taste is more full and rich.
Different grades: the grades of these two producing areas are divided according to the length of barrel aging, but because of their different requirements for barrel aging, there are naturally different grades.
"VS" grade should be aged for at least 2 years;
"VSOP" grade has been aged for at least 4 years;
"XO, Napoleon, Extra, hord' age" are all at least 10 years old.
"Blanche" is not aged in barrels;
"VS" is at least 1 year;
"VSOP" has existed for at least 4 years;
"Napoleon" is at least 6 years old;
"XO, Hors' age" is at least 10 years old;
"Indicate the year" needs to indicate the minimum barrel age on the wine label;
Armagnac's "year" shows that all wines come from the same year and have been aged for at least 65,438+00 years.
Speaking of brandy, most people are familiar with it, especially Hennessy, Martell, remy martin and Napoleon.
Armagnac and its producing areas are smaller than cognac, mainly small wineries. The annual output of Armaniak is 5.4 million bottles, which is only 1/30 of that of cognac. Most of Armaniak is only sold in France.
However, the French people's recognition of Armaniak is much higher than that of cognac. Therefore, there is also a saying that "the French gave their cognac to the world and hid Armagnac in France".
Finally, how to choose brandy? Cognac or Armagnac brandy, or any other brandy? It's not that complicated. Just drink and find your own taste!
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