How is cognac produced? What is cognac made from?

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Good cognac is appreciated in any society. It has a unique taste and pleasant aroma. The drink does not tolerate haste and haste. It takes time to try it out. None of the alcoholic beverages inspires as much admiration and respect as an old, well-aged cognac. What is this miracle made of and how? To answer the questions, you need to plunge into the past.

A bit of history

Cognac originated in France. Its history begins in the 1st century AD. when the Romans brought grapes to the country. The mild sunny climate contributed to rich harvests. From the 12th century, the French began to actively produce wine, and by the 15th century there was an overabundance of the drink. From long storage, it ran out of steam, deteriorated, and it was decided to distill the wine into alcohol.

There are several legends about how cognac appeared. According to one of them, the Chevalier de la Croix decided to distill the wine twice. This idea arose after a nightmare. The resulting liquidpoured into a barrel. After 15 years, the Chevalier decided to try the drink. Opening the barrel, he was surprised that the contents had become half as much, and the taste and aroma of the drink became richer and much more pleasant.

Another version says that in the 17th century, winemakers could not take out barrels of grape vodka in time. The reason was the English fleet, which did not allow French ships to go to sea. Contrary to the worst expectations of winemakers, vodka has not become worse, but on the contrary, it has improved its taste. Since then, the French have been experimenting with barrel wood, contents and aging.

How cognac is made at the factory

The technology of making the drink has been developed over many centuries. There are many subtleties in it that cannot be neglected, otherwise it will adversely affect the final result.

Great attention is paid to what kind of grapes cognac is made from. Today, only a few varieties are allowed to be used for production. The harvest takes place in early October. Grapes are immediately sent under the press. The berries are not separated from the branches. The press is used horizontal or automatic. The main thing is that he does not crush the grape seeds. The resulting must is left to ferment for 2 to 4 weeks. Interestingly, sugar is not involved in the process. The result is a grape wine that contains an average of 8% alcohol.

Then the drink is distilled. To get 1 liter of alcohol, you need to process 9 liters of wine. After repeated distillation, a liquid with a strength of 69-70% is obtained. oneApril it is bottled in oak barrels and aged for at least 3 years. Sometimes the term can be 50 or even 100 years. Barrels of alcohol are stored at a temperature of 150C. After a while, the strength of the drink decreases, and the liquid itself evaporates. Losses are up to 4%. The French joke that this part is the share of angels.

What is cognac stored in

What storage containers are made of is very important. The quality of the drink depends on this. According to research, old containers transfer about 2,000 wood components to alcohol. For the manufacture of barrels, wood of hundred-year-old oaks is used. It must be strong and porous. Nails must not be used to fasten barrels.

Trying to save containers, the French resort to sophisticated methods. Even bred inside spiders, because. believe that the web can extend the life of the tree. But mostly they use the old proven method - they remove the spent layer of wood after several decades, and the barrel can continue to serve.

Often the aging of cognac is judged by its color. It is believed that older drinks have darker shades. This is not entirely true. Perhaps the cognac was stored in a barrel, which was subjected to weak firing. The liquid in such a container is almost light.

Cognac classification

Quality requirements for this drink are high. Cognacs are divided into three types depending on the aging and raw materials used:

1. Ordinary. For their manufacture, they take cognac spirits of small exposure, 3-5 years. ATDepending on the age of the raw material, the number of stars is indicated on the label. The strength of drinks is 40-42%. The older the brandy, the more pronounced taste it has.



2. Vintage. For these drinks, you need raw materials of at least 6-7 years of aging. Among them, aged, aged of the highest quality, old cognacs are distinguished. The fortress reaches 57%.
3. Collectible. They differ from vintage cognacs in that their aging period is at least five years longer.

Brandy and Armagnac

Cognac is made in many countries. But according to the rules, only those drinks that are produced in the town of Charente, one of the regions of France, are called so. If alcoholic products are produced using the same technology, but in a different locality, it will be called "brandy". In terms of quality and taste, it can be no worse than cognac. What the drink is made of, what technology is used - the main parameters that affect the quality of the product. Since brandy is not subject to high requirements, the process of its production has become simpler, and any grape variety is used as a raw material.

Speaking of cognac, it is impossible not to mention such a drink as armagnac. Few people know what it is. Meanwhile, Armagnac is the pride of France. This drink appeared much earlier than cognac, it has been known for over 300 years. The manufacturing technology of Armagnac is different in that the raw material is distilled once. The drink is aged in oak barrels from 3 to 20 years. The requirements for it are as high as for cognac. Armagnac is allowed to be made only in three regions of France out of ten certain grape varieties. The drink is not intended for import, so its production is limited and the price is high.

How to make cognac yourself

Real quality cognac is an expensive pleasure, and not everyone can afford it. Many people are surprised when they hear: “And we make cognac at home.” Is it really possible? For cognac lovers, there are many recipes that allow you to make this drink at home. Home production is very different from how cognac is made at the factory. The basic principle is the insistence of strong alcohol on oak bark, herbs, berries, spices. Of course, the result obtained will be far from the original. It is more correct to call it cognac tincture. The advantage of home production is that there is no doubt about the quality of the resulting product. Plus, it's easy to gather the ingredients you need.

Homemade cognac from moonshine

To make a drink, you need to take an alcohol base with a high alcohol content. But before making cognac from moonshine, the liquid must be cleaned. This can be done in 3 ways:

1. Put activated charcoal tablets in moonshine, about 4 plates. Insist 7-10 days. Then filter through cotton wool wrapped in gauze.
2. Throw a few crystals of potassium permanganate into a container with moonshine and leave to infuse. After dropsediment, strain the liquid through cotton wool.
3. Pour milk into moonshine at the rate of 2:1. Stir. When the milk has curdled, strain the drink through cheesecloth.

After cleaning the liquid, you can start the cooking process. There are many recipes that tell how to make cognac from moonshine. You will need oak branches to make the taste and aroma of cognac closer to the original. They need to be dried, chopped (make short chips), if desired, you can burn. Instead of branches, oak bark is often used. You need to pour moonshine into a glass bottle, add chips to it, cork. The drink is infused for at least a month in a dark place.

Homemade cognac from alcohol

Instead of moonshine, you can use another base. In the original, cognac is made from wine spirit. Since it is very difficult to get it, another ingredient is often used. For example, many lovers are interested in how to make cognac from alcohol? First, dilute the alcohol with water to 400. Pour 3 liters of diluted alcohol into a jar, add 2 tbsp. spoons of burnt sugar, ½ teaspoon of ground nutmeg, 5 tbsp. tablespoons of chopped oak bark, 3 cloves and a little vanilla. Mix the ingredients well and leave the container with the mixture to infuse in a cold place for about a month. When the drink is ready, it must be filtered and bottled. Instead of alcohol, you can take high-quality vodka. This will result in a softer cognac.

What else is the drink made of? In addition to spices, herbs are used, for example, St. John's wort, lemon balm, bay leaf,tarragon. Vanillin is often present in recipes. You can find zest, walnut shell partitions, black tea, coffee. The composition depends solely on the taste preferences of the manufacturer.

How to choose

Today, stores offer a large selection of this drink. Since not every person will agree to make homemade cognac, the question arises of how to choose it in a store? First you need to turn the bottle upside down. If one drop falls down, then this is a good aged drink. Liquid flowing down the walls means that the cognac is young. Transparency is one of the most important characteristics. If you can see a fingerprint left on the opposite side of the glass through the liquid, then the quality of the cognac is at its best.

Now you should pay attention to the speed with which the drink flows down the walls of the vessel. To do this, the glass must be slowly rotated around its axis. In cognac with 20 years of exposure, traces, the so-called "legs", even, with droplets, remain for 15 seconds. Drink aged 5-8 years drains 3 times faster.

The aroma of cognac deserves a separate discussion. It unfolds gradually. At a distance of 5 cm from the edge of the glass, light smells are captured, among which there is a note of vanilla. Near the edge, the aroma becomes floral-fruity. At the end, the smell becomes heavy. Now you can try the drink. They drink cognac slowly. Each small sip should bring pleasure in taste and aroma.

Good cognac delights tasters. Howeverhomemade drink also does not leave people indifferent. When guests try it at a family celebration, they admire the pleasant taste and aroma. A modest confession: “We make cognac at home” gives rise to surprise, which develops into admiration. Of course, everyone will want to know the recipe for a wonderful drink. Whether to share or not is up to the owner of the secret of making homemade cognac.