Vintage Brandy
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Vintage brandy encompasses single-harvest Cognac and Armagnac distilled from Ugni Blanc and other permitted grape varieties grown across France's Charente and Gascony regions, then aged in oak for decades before bottling. Cognac's cru system shapes character dramatically, with Grande Champagne limestone soils producing the most age-worthy spirits, evident in Hine's 1982 and Daniel Bouju's uncut Brut de Fut expression. Armagnac, distilled in continuous column stills rather than Cognac's double pot-still method, develops a wilder, earthier profile, seen across L'Encantada's 1999 Lous Pibous and Domaine d'Ognoas's 1973. Gabriel and Andreu's 1997 Fins Bois represents an approachable entry point, while Remy Martin's Louis XIII and Martell's XO Cordon Supreme from the 1980s and 1990s represent decades of patient cellaring at the category's upper reaches.
Description
Vintage brandy encompasses single-harvest Cognac and Armagnac distilled from Ugni Blanc and other permitted grape varieties grown across France's Charente and Gascony regions, then aged in oak for decades before bottling. Cognac's cru system shapes character dramatically, with Grande Champagne limestone soils producing the most age-worthy spirits, evident in Hine's 1982 and Daniel Bouju's uncut Brut de Fut expression. Armagnac, distilled in continuous column stills rather than Cognac's double pot-still method, develops a wilder, earthier profile, seen across L'Encantada's 1999 Lous Pibous and Domaine d'Ognoas's 1973. Gabriel and Andreu's 1997 Fins Bois represents an approachable entry point, while Remy Martin's Louis XIII and Martell's XO Cordon Supreme from the 1980s and 1990s represent decades of patient cellaring at the category's upper reaches.