Cognac - key facts
Words by Simon Difford
Cognac is a fine French brandy (eau-de-vie) from the region that surrounds the little town of Cognac in southwest France. Like champagne, its mere name suggests luxury and indeed it is the undisputed king of all brandies.
Where cognac is from
The picturesque Cognac region lies at the northern end of the Aquitaine basin plains 120km (75 miles) north of Bordeaux, 80km (50 miles) from the Atlantic Ocean and 483kms (300 miles) south of Paris. To the west, it borders the Gironde estuary, while the Massif Central foothills lie to the east.
Cognac only comes from the Cognac region
The Cognac region has been recognised as an Appellation of Origin since 1909 and production and marketing of cognac are tightly controlled under French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée rules established in 1938.
Cognac sub regions
The Cognac region is divided into six sub-regions (crus), reflecting variations in climate and soil. The biggest houses only use grapes from the top four regions:
Grande Champagne
Petite Champagne
Borderies
Fins Bois
Bons Bois
Bois Ordinaires
Cognac grape varieties
Three kinds of grape are grown in cognac: Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche and Colombard but, due to its resistance to frost, pests and mould, over 95% of grapes grown in the region are Ugni Blanc.
How cognac is made
Cognac production is strickly regulated by French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) rules.
Harvesting begins as soon as the grapes reach maturity, typically at the beginning of October and the harvest will generally be completed by the end of the month.
Pressing is usually in horizontal pneumatic bladder presses, although some smaller concerns still use traditional basket plate presses. (Vertical continuous presses are not permitted.)
Fermentation of the grape juice is with selected yeasts and after 5-7 days a wine of 8.5-9% alc./vol. is produced. (Most cognac houses will not distil wines which are over 9.5% alc./vol..)
Distillation usually starts at the beginning of November and continues day and night until that vintages wine has been distilled and this must be completed before 31 March. Cognac must be double distilled using copper pot stills (alembics) communally called Charentais. For the first distillation (première chauffe), the still used can contain up to 140 hectolitres of wine. This produces a distillate known as brouillis with a strength of 28-32% alc./vol.. The brouillis is distilled a second time, known as the la bonne chauffe in a smaller still with a maximum of 25 hectolitres of brouillis. The final distillate collected from this second distillation is called eau-de-vie and has a strength of 70%-72% alc./vol..
Maturation or aging of the eau-de-vie must be for a minimum of two years in oak casks with a capacity between 270 to 450 litres before it can be termed cognac. The wood from which these casks are made generally comes from the French forests of Tronçais and Limousin forests (Quersus pedunculata and Quersus sessiliflora respectively). Cognac 'cellars' are well-ventilated ground level buildings without windows, often with bare earth floors.
Blending is key to cognac which must be made from at least two different aged eaux-de-vie blended together. These could be the product of two different vintages from the same vineyard or produced from different vineyards on the same year.
Permitted additives
It is permitted to use additives to make cognac and these include caramel, for colour correction, sugar and boise boise, a dark goo made by boiling wood and reducing the resulting liquid which is used to give the impression of extended wood ageing. These additives are commonplace (most cognacs have at least 1.5 grams of sugar per litre but must be less than 2% of the total volume).
Quality / age classifications
Cognacs are classified according to the length of ageing of the youngest eau-de-vie in the blend and they are officially 'born' on the 31st March each year.
V.S. or Three Star - the youngest eau-de-vie in the blend will be at least Compte 2 (2½ years from harvest). V.S. stands for 'Very Special' and the stars are thought to have originally celebrated the sighting of Halley's Comet during a particularly good year and originally indicated age with a star signifying each year of ageing.
V.S.O.P., Reserve or V.O. - must be at least Compte 4 (4½ years from harvest). V.S.O.P. stands for 'very superior old pale' cognac.
Napoléon - must be at least a Compte 6 (six and a half years from harvest), but they are often very much older.
X.O., Vieux, Hors d'age, Extra - this used to be a minimum of at least Compte 6 (six and a half years from harvest) but this was increased to ten years reflecting the fact that X.O. cognacs are generally at least 15-20 years old. X.O. stands for Extra Old.
Vintage Cognac - While it is not permitted to put an age statement on cognac, the rules do allow for vintage cognacs made with eaux-de-vie from a single harvest and that year may be specified on the label.
