Brandy: The story behind the spirit

We all know the French smoke in an inimitably stylish way. The image of one of our cousins from across the Channel giving a gallic shrug while drawing effortlessly on a Gauloise is a classic stereotype. But who knew a Frenchman could maintain the pose while performing one of the most skilled jobs in the world of drinks, puffing distractedly while their nez is positioned inches from the viciously sharp blades of barrel-making machinery?

That's exactly what a cooper is doing as I watch him hack trunks of French oak into fine panels ready to be wilted over heat and brutally bashed together into a shape eventually recognisable as a barrel.

I'm here in a plant near Jarnac, nestled above Bordeaux in the South-West region of France defined as Cognac, to learn about the production of the spirit of the same name. The smoker's job in the cooperage is just one of the spectacular stages involved in making cognac, a spirit that suppliers are keen to differentiate from brandy.

It has been one of the recent missions of Courvoisier, Martell, Hennessy et al to educate trade and consumers about how the category of brandy is broken down into sub-divisions, the most premium being cognac. They claim that, for pubs to find success with cognac, staff need to be knowledgeable on the drink's production.

What better way of getting that knowledge than observing the stages of the cognac-making process first-hand? Here's what I found out.

1. Location​

With its chalky soil, wet winters and glorious summers, Cognac is the perfect place to produce the most refined of brandies.

While brandy can be made anywhere, a decree by the French authorities in 1909 stipulated that, for a spirit to take the name of cognac, it must be made in this region.

Further to location, though, there are four more conditions that legally define a cognac.

It must be made using grapes from the six designated districts or 'crus' that form Cognac. Courvoisier uses grapes from the four crus regarded as producing the finest grapes - Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies and Fins Bois.

Secondly, it must follow traditional wine-making techniques.

Thirdly, it must be distilled in the 'Charentais' stills that have been used in the region for centuries.

Lastly, it must be aged in French oak barrels for a minimum of three years.

2. Grapes​

By law, only three varieties of grape can be used. The most popular is Ugni Blanc, followed by the Colombard and Folle Blanche varieties. This year's harvest from the many vineyards with which Courvoisier has contracts was "disappointing in volume but of reasonable quantity," according to Pierre Szersnovicz, Courvoisier spirit quality control manager.

The wine-making process begins shortly after harvest, when the grapes are placed into pneumatic presses until they start to ferment.

Fermentation is a two-stage procedure: the first lasts for up to a week, when the sugar turns to alcohol, while the second increases the complexity of the wine and reduces the acidity.

3. Distillation​

To transform the fermented wine into the young spirit that is referred to as 'eau de vie' (or 'water of life') ready for ageing in barrels, distillation must take place.

This is a very intricate process and one that relies on the expertise of a cognac house's master distiller. During winter, distilleries work day and night, seven days a week in order to meet a legal deadline of the end of March imposed on the process.

Using a traditional copper pot still, the wine is heated and yields the 'broullis'. During the second distillation, the unwanted components are removed and only the rich, smooth 'heart' of the spirit remains.

Unsurprisingly, this entire process is time-consuming and expensive. In Courvoisier's case, it takes 10 litres of wine to create a single litre of cognac.

4. Barrels​

The barrels, and the type of wood used to make them, is tremendously important to the quality of the final product.

Because of the wood's importance, Courvoisier involves its master blender in hand-selecting the 200-year-old oak trees from which each barrel is made.

First, the coopers split the wood into staves before leaving them to season in the open air for three years.

Once all trace of bitterness in the wood has gone, they are assembled inside a metal hoop to form the barrel and toasted over a fire. The effect these flames have on the barrels has a great influence on the eau de vie that will be placed inside it, adding rich aroma to the young cognac.

5. Maturation​

The walls of the buildings in which Courvoisier ages the cognac in barrels is tainted with a thin black mould. Far from being a case of poor hygiene, this is evidence of the charming-sounding 'part des anges' or 'angels' share' - the three per cent of the liquid's volume that is lost in evaporation. As a tour guide says: "We could clean it off, but it is part of cognac's romance!"

The same tiny pores in the wood that let the evaporation out allow the liquid to be kept in constant contact with the air, crucial in taking on flavour.

The spirit is aged for a period, removed from the barrel and blended, put back and aged, removed and blended… and so on. In all, it will be aged for around 50 years.

After half a century, when Courvoisier judges that the spirit has reached its peak, the cognacs are transferred into glass vessels ready to be blended together into the finished product.

6. Blending​

The master blender's job is a skilful one.

They must mix together the aged spirits to end up with what he deems the perfect finished product. Everything from the differing quality of wines season-after-season to the barrels themselves and the cellar's humidity can change the flavour of the cognacs they must blend.

A tasting committee is involved in quality control, and it is not until they can confirm it is exactly the same as the previous year that the blend is prepared for bottling.

And there you have it, a bottle of velvety premium spirit, ready to be served to your customers!

7. Mixability​

One of the main concerns for the brandy category is mixability.

Many cognac brands are running promotions based around pubs using the spirit in simple long drinks. Courvoisier recently launched a new product, Courvoisier Exclusif, which - with a subtle flavour profile and ergonomic bottle - is designed specifically for mixing.

For some simple brandy cocktail recipes, go to www.thepublican.com/drinksrecipes

The many types of brandy

Brandy is defined as a liquor distilled from wine or other fermented fruit juice, but there are many sub-categories. As the saying among brandy producers goes, all cognacs are brandies, but not all brandies are cognacs…

• Cognac: Produced almost entirely using Ugni Blanc grapes (although Folle Blanche and Colombard are also permitted), cognac by law must be produced in the French region now known as Cognac. The fermented wine is high in acid but low in alcohol and, once double distilled in pot stills, gives cognac its flavour profile. The new cognac is then aged in oak barrels and blended for consistency.

• French grape brandy: Produced from any grapes grown in France. Usually aged for between two and four years.

• Spanish brandy: From the Andalusian region of South-West Spain, where it has been produced since the 15th century. Usually aged for between two and three years.

• Calvados: This dry apple brandy is a speciality of the Normandy region of France and must be aged for at least one year.

• Armagnac: Produced only in the region of Gascony, South-West France, from Folle Blanche, Ugni Blanc and Colombard grapes. Usually aged for between two and five years.