Cognac – drink of noble amber color with many-sided, saturated velvet taste. And only the French perfectly know art of transformation of a young wine into fiery alcohol with a rich flavoring bouquet.
Cognac history
Cognac – the largest city of department of Sharant was the developed shopping center selling salt. Local wines were produced for personal needs and a little for sale. The Dutch dealers coming behind salt, having tried out local drinks began to buy and take out wine.
Being guided by the appeared demand, the French begin to expand vineyards and to develop production. Because the quality of a young wine was not on the ball, in the course of transportation drink spoiled, perekisat and exhausted. Then Dutches tried to make "burned wine" by a distillation method. The received wine spirit easily transferred transportation, didn't lose fortress and didn't spoil.
Inventive Dutches hoped that on arrival home they will be able to restore wine, having added water to distillate. To huge disappointment of experimenters wine at them didn't turn out, however, the new form of alcohol was to the taste to them. brandwijn, and then brandy began to call new drink. The French quickly understood advantage of a new product. Besides in the province strongly lifted a wine export tax. Wine makers designed column stills, improved technology and began to trade already in result of distillation. In the 12th century the industrialists found out that at double distillation better and pure wine spirit turns out. Since then wine began to be subjected to double distillation. And during one long flight, alcohol stayed in oak casks considerable time. When drink from barrels was spilled for realization, it was noticed that liquid developed noble golden color and especially pleasant taste. Alcohol began to be taken in pure form. All strong binge brought from French Charente called "cognac".
Modern cognac industry
Today's process of the cognac industry a little in what differs from production of the 12th century. Special requirements are imposed to grapes from which cognac will be produced subsequently. Grape berries of a grade of Ugni Blanc are considered as optimum raw materials, wine turns out very sour, with the lowered sugar content. Harvesting is carried out mainly manually to avoid raw materials decline in quality. At an extraction of grape juice use special presses. It is forbidden to squeeze out berries dry, otherwise oil of grape seeds can get to liquid that considerably will distort taste of drink. After fermentation the received wine is subjected to primary distillation. Use a sharantsky column still of a special form of 5 thousand liters. Redistillation is carried out in a copper no more than 30 decalitres. Laws of the cognac industry demand that distillation was carried out strictly on March 31. Thus, the endurance for any cognac is reckoned since April 1. Primary aging of cognac is made in the burned oak casks. Wood for a container has to be only from Limuzen's woods or to Tronsa. Cognac is matured in such barrels at a certain humidity and temperature is no more than 5 years old. Then it is poured in old barrels where it gradually decreases in volume, reduces fortress, reaching 42 - 50 degrees. Experts define the peak of endurance and after that spill cognac on glass tanks in which it can be stored by dozens, and even hundreds of years. For obtaining a certain brand of drink, cognac is subjected to blending – mix certain grades of alcohol. For achievement of a certain fortress of alcohol in case the cognac spirit is too strong, add the distilled water. Addition of caramel and sugar is officially authorized, but the well-known cognac houses are proud of the fact that they don't use similar "tricks".