About Brandy
How is Brandy Made?
What separates vodka, aquavit, cognac, and apple brandy?
What separates vodka, aquavit, cognac, and apple brandy?
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Vodka, gin, and aquavit are made from 96% ethyl alcohol, which is mass-produced in large industrial column distilleries. To reach an alcohol level as high as 96%, the distillate has to go through a prosess called rectification, which removes almost all aroma from the raw material. It doesn’t matter if potatoes, corn, or other raw materials are used: it doesn't affect the flavor. Herbs and spices are added, and the mixture may be stored in oak barrels before water is added and the final product is bottled. For example, juniper berries are added to make Gin, and caraway seeds or dill is added to make aquavit. Products made from ethyl alcohol are called flavored spirits or “fake” brandies, because it is not the wine from the raw materials that contributes to the flavor, but the spices. Flavored liquor is an inheritance from the early technological period with premature distilleries. Herbs with strong aromas and spices were used to cover the unpleasant smell of fusel.
Real brandy is distilled up to only 75% alcohol. This makes the the taste and aroma from the raw materials stand out. The distillation takes place in pot stills. Here both the craftsmanship and the quality of the raw material are crucial. The distillate is made from fermented "wine" or fruit mass. The most significant types of fruit brandies are grape brandy and apple brandy, however, almost all types of fruits can be used, even vegetables and nuts. Whiskey is also a real brandy made of corn in large pot stills with the typical swan neck.
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There are two European fruit brandy traditions:
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Barrel-aged grape brandy (Cognac and Armagnac) and apple brandy (Calvados), which is distilled in traditional French alembics.
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Non-aged (clear) spirits distilled in German pot stills:
apple brandy (Apfelbrand), pear brandy (Birnenbrand "Williams"), cherry brandy (Kirschwasser), plum brandy (Pflaumenbrand, in the Balkans: Slivovic). Italian grappa distilled from the leftovers from grape pressing also belongs to this tradition of clear brandy. |
Today there are many products that cross these lines.
To sum up; "fake" brandy is flavored industrial spirits made of 96% neutral alcohol without aroma from the raw materials, while real brandy is distilled using real craftsmanship, from "wine" or fermented fruit mass, and where the aromas from the raw materials are crucial for the quality.