Cognac

Cognac is a brandy, a spirit distilled from wine, but only brandy made in the Cognac region of western France and to its rules can carry the name. All cognac is brandy; most brandy is not cognac. That is the whole of the cognac vs brandy question.

What cognac is made from

The grapes are white varieties, with Ugni Blanc the most widely used. The wine is fermented without added sugar or sulphur, which leaves it thin, sharp and low in alcohol, a poor drink and a good base for distilling. It is then distilled twice in Charentais copper alembic pot stills, whose design and dimensions are legally controlled, and aged at least two years in French oak, mainly from Limousin or Tronçais. Because the spirit is made from wine, it carries the histamines and polyphenols of grapes in a way grain spirits do not.

What the rules allow

The industry body BNIC sets the grades, based on the age of the youngest eau-de-vie in the blend. VS is at least 2 years, VSOP at least 4, Napoléon at least 6, and XO at least 10, a minimum raised from 6 years in April 2018. Cognac is bottled at 40% or above, and the rules permit water, sugar, plain caramel and boisé, an oak infusion, to adjust the finished spirit, while flavoring is prohibited. Few houses publish what they add, so a smooth VSOP can owe part of its softness to sugar and a deeper color to caramel.

Types of cognac

Beyond the age grades, the region is divided into six crus: Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fins Bois, Bons Bois and Bois Ordinaires. Most big-house cognac is a blend across them. Hennessy VS, Martell VS and Courvoisier VS are the entry grade, and Rémy Martin VSOP is the step up. For the grain-spirit contrast, see cognac vs bourbon. The sibling in another brandy tradition is bourbon, which gets its flavor from new oak instead of wine.

Calories and sugar

Ethanol alone at 40% is about 97 kcal per 1.5 oz pour, and unlike most whisky, cognac can add a little sugar on top through the permitted dosage. The amount is small compared with a liqueur and rarely printed on the label. Ranking by brand is at healthiest cognac, and the grape-based answer on gluten is at gluten-free cognac.

Hangover profile

Cognac rates 8 out of 10 on the hangover index here, the highest of the brown spirits. The reasons stack: high congeners from two distillations and oak aging, high histamines from the wine base, moderate tannins and moderate sugar and additives. Older grades concentrate those compounds further, so an XO is not the gentler choice on the morning after that its price suggests.