Cognac · Explainer
Questions about cognac
This page contains the answers to the questions most often asked about cognac. Every answer is written by the wine & spirits shop in Bathmen, backed up by its own stock and supplied with sources.
All the answers at a glance
All questions
- What do VS, VSOP and XO mean on a bottle of cognac?VS, VSOP and XO are ageing designations. VS stands for at least 2 years of ageing in oak, VSOP for at least 4 years, Napoléon for…
- What is the difference between whisky and cognac?Whisky is distilled from grain, cognac from white grapes. Scotch must mature for at least three years in oak casks of up to 700 litres and…
- How do you drink cognac?Pour cognac neat into a tulip-shaped stemmed glass. The Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac recommends 2 to 4 centilitres; the…
- Why is there no year on a bottle of cognac?A bottle of cognac is almost always a blend of eaux-de-vie from different years, made to taste the same every year. That is why there is…
- What does Fine Champagne mean on a cognac bottle?Fine Champagne on a cognac bottle means that the cognac consists only of eaux-de-vie from two crus: Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne. At least…
- What do Hors d'Age and XXO mean on a bottle?XXO on a cognac bottle means that the youngest eau-de-vie has lain in wood for at least fourteen years. That designation was added in 2018 to…
- What are the cognac regions?Cognac has six regions, called crus: Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fins Bois, Bons Bois and Bois Ordinaires. Together they cover well over…
- How long does cognac keep after opening?Cognac does not mature further in the bottle: once bottled, the age is fixed. Unopened, a bottle keeps for years, upright and…
- What does Napoleon on a cognac bottle mean?Napoleon on a cognac bottle is a legal age designation, not a brand name and not a quality inspection. The designation may only appear on cognac of which the…
- What is cognac?Cognac is a wine distillate with protected origin from the delimited area around the town of Cognac, in the French departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime.…
- Which grapes are in cognac?Cognac is made from white grapes. The cahier des charges of the AOC Cognac permits six varieties: ugni blanc, folle blanche,…
- Hoe wordt cognac gedistilleerd?Cognac wordt tweemaal gestookt in een alambic charentais waarvan de hoofddelen van koper zijn. De eerste stook maakt van de wijn brouillis,…
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