Cognac & Armagnac France. Cognac, France Cognac: France’s best-known brandy Peaceful countryside 100 miles north of Bordeaux Medieval town with elegant.

Cognac & ArmagnacFrance

Cognac, France

• Cognac: France’s best-known brandy

• Peaceful countryside 100 miles north of Bordeaux

• Medieval town with elegant Renaissance facades

• Pastoral landscape with stone farmhouses along the fields

• Region also known for its butter, snails, natural sea salts, and brandy

• Brandy: ("burnt wine") is a spirit produced by distilling wine

Cognac Overview • Drinks must be made according to strictly-defined regulations

to be named Cognac

• Consists of six vineyard growth areas, called ‘Crus’:

1. Grande Champagne *Best Growth 2. Petite Champagne 3. Borderies 4. Fins Bois 5. Bon Bois 6. Bois Ordinaire

• Cognac second biggest wine region of France, right after Bordeaux

• “Origine Controlée Cognac” (AOC) appellation totals 790 million square meters of vineyards

Growth Area / Cru Size Characteristics

Grande Champagne34 700 hectares / 13 250 ha covered with vineyards

Some hills, and chalky soil

Petite Champagne65 600 ha / 15 250 ha covered with vineyards

Chalky but more compact than the Grande Champagne

Borderies12 500 ha / 4 000 ha covered with vineyards

It’s a plateau with clay and flint stones

Fins Bois350 000 ha / 31 200 ha covered with vineyards

Mixed soil: red, clay and limestone

Bons Bois370 000 ha / 9 300 ha covered with vineyards

Very mixed soils, clay, limestone, sands

Bois Ordinaires260 000 ha / 1066 ha covered with vineyards

Mainly sand soils, including islands Ile de Ré and Ile d’Oléron

6 Crus of the Cognac Region

Cognac Process

• Each Cru has different fragrance - flowers, green fruits (apple, pear), grapes

• Produced by blending a variety of "Eau de Vie”

• Eau de Vie: French for “water of life.” A clear, colorless fruit brandy that is produced by means of fermentation and double distillation

• 98% of the Cognac vineyards are planted with Ugni Blanc

• Ugni Blanc: produces wines with elevated levels of acidity and low alcohol, fairly neutral in taste

Cognac Process • The Cognac Still: known as alambic

Charentaise

• Distillation process:1. Heat wine until it boils2. Purely condense its vapors3. Reconvert this steam into liquid

form again4. Repeat 2nd distillation or Bonne

Chauffe

• Quality controlled by length of time Cognac is matured in oak barrels

• The longer the Cognac matures barrel, the smoother it is

• Once bottled, no further development takes place

Armagnac, France• Armagnac: grape brandy from the

Gascony region of southwestern France

• One of the first areas to begin distilling spirits

• Granted AOC status in 1936

• Situated between the Atlantic and the Pyrénées Mountains

• Generous amount of sunshine through winter, rainfall in the spring which nourishes vineyards with a warm summer

• Volume of production is far smaller than Cognac production

Armagnac • Official production areas divided into 3 districts:

1. Bas-Armagnac • Grapes grow in acidic, argillaceous and stony ground• Iron rust colors parts of the soil

2. Armagnac-Ténarèze• Soil consists mainly of limestone, sand and clay• The Ténarèze distillate is considered to be the strongest-tasting

Armagnac

3. Haut-Armagnac• Area is called "white Armagnac" because of the abundance of

limestone• Vineyards are scattered like islands over the chalky clay hills

Armagnac Process • 4 grapes commonly used:

1. Folle Blanche: light-to-medium-bodied wine low in alcohol (7%-9%), high in acidity

2. Ugni Blanc: produces wines with elevated levels of acidity and low alcohol, fairly neutral in taste• Comprises ≈ 55% of the grapes used for

Armagnac• Contain pleasing floral aromatics that tend to

accentuate the spice notes from the oak

3. Colombard: aroma is slightly herbal and reminiscent of freshly mown hay

4. Bacco: full-bodied, with plenty of fat and volume• With age expresses jammy dried plum notes

• Different grapes = different aromas, flavors, and different weights and textures on the palate

Armagnac Process • Use a single continuous distillation rather than

double batch distillation

• Distillation process:1. Heat wine until it boils2. Purely condense its vapors3. Reconvert this steam into liquid form

again

• Retains earthy and fruity flavors in the finished spirit

• Gains much of its character and flavor during aging

• Quality is dependent on the period of time the brandy spends in wood

• As it matures, it turns from being a clear to an amber color

• Absorbs tannins and other flavors from the oak

• A.C.: 2 years old, aged in wood

• V.O., Very Old: Aged minimum of 4 years

• V.S., Very Special: Aged 3 years in wooden casks, often called Three Star

• V.S.O.P., Very Superior Old Pale: Minimum aging 8 years in wood for youngest blend - industry average is between 10 and 15 years old, known as Five Star

• X.O., Extra Old: Also called Luxury, minimum age of 8 years.

• Napoleon/Extra/Vielle Reserve: At least 4 years old=

• Varietal: Made using only one type of varietal grape

• Vintage: Aged and bottled in the year of the vintage

• Hors d'Age: Too old to figure out the age; true gem

Grades of Cognac & Armagnac

Summary: Basic Differences • Grapes

– Armagnac grapes split between Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, Colombard, and Bacco

– Cognac grapes comprised of 98% Ugni Blanc

• Geography– Armagnac's best grapes grown on sandy soil in warm temperatures – Cognac's best grapes grown on chalky soil with mild temperatures

• Distillation– Armagnac often single-distilled in a alambic– Cognac required to be twice distilled in a pot still

• Vintage– Traditional Armagnac given a vintage date – Cognac vintages extremely rare – usually a blend of various vintages

• Single Varietal– Single-varietal Armagnac is common, especially Folle Blanche– One rarely sees a varietal printed on a Cognac label

Cognac & ArmagnacFrance