Brandy

flyinglentris

flyinglentris

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Brandy is wine, distilled further to concentrate the sugars and flavors.

I have learned (just now) that there are included in the category of brandy, cognac and armagnac, cognc being lighter and sweeter while armagnac is fuller and more robust with a higher alcohol content.

All this new knowledge has me a bit off balance, as I was looking for a dessert brandy that could be used by itself, as an ingredient in desserts or as a flavoring for my coffee. Some brandy is further distilled with fruit added to the mix.

The only brandy, so it turns out, that I have ever tried, is a cognac, - Grand Marnier Orange, which I have used for cooking in the past.

Given my purpose, has anyone any suggestions for a good dessert brandy that would fulfill those intents?
 
flyinglentris said:
All this new knowledge has me a bit off balance, as I was looking for a dessert brandy that could be used by itself, as an ingredient in desserts or as a flavoring for my coffee. Some brandy is further distilled with fruit added to the mix.

The only brandy, so it turns out, that I have ever tried, is a cognac, - Grand Marnier Orange, which I have used for cooking in the past.

Given my purpose, has anyone any suggestions for a good dessert brandy that would fulfill those intents?
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What you´ve actually been using is a cognac liqueur; a mixture of cognac and other flavours ( in this case, orange).
Brandy comes in many forms: there´s Spanish brandy ( Duque de Alba), French "brandy" ( Cognac, Armagnac - I much prefer the latter), Greek brandy (Metaxa), Slivovic (Czech or mid-European plum brandy), etc, etc, etc.
If you want to use it in desserts or in your coffee, you can´t go far wrong with a Hennessy or a Courvoisier Cognac. Good flavours, not particularly expensive, right flavour. Crepe suzettes on the way!
 
karadekoolaid said:
What you´ve actually been using is a cognac liqueur; a mixture of cognac and other flavours ( in this case, orange).
Brandy comes in many forms: there´s Spanish brandy ( Duque de Alba), French "brandy" ( Cognac, Armagnac - I much prefer the latter), Greek brandy (Metaxa), Slivovic (Czech or mid-European plum brandy), etc, etc, etc.
If you want to use it in desserts or in your coffee, you can´t go far wrong with a Hennessy or a Courvoisier Cognac. Good flavours, not particularly expensive, right flavour. Crepe suzettes on the way!
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Hint, you might want to do an internet search on hour to pronounce Courvoisier before going into a store and asking for it.

CD
 
Well i checked the way I've always said it and found I'm pretty darn close to the French pronunciation.

We asked for limoncello once in a liquor store in a fairly wealthy community in a 4 or 5 shop retail center that included our favorite high end Italian restaurant. Their, a couple of middle aged men, reply was we don't sell jello here...
 
flyinglentris said:
Brandy is wine, distilled further to concentrate the sugars and flavors.

I have learned (just now) that there are included in the category of brandy, cognac and armagnac, cognc being lighter and sweeter while armagnac is fuller and more robust with a higher alcohol content.

All this new knowledge has me a bit off balance, as I was looking for a dessert brandy that could be used by itself, as an ingredient in desserts or as a flavoring for my coffee. Some brandy is further distilled with fruit added to the mix.

The only brandy, so it turns out, that I have ever tried, is a cognac, - Grand Marnier Orange, which I have used for cooking in the past.

Given my purpose, has anyone any suggestions for a good dessert brandy that would fulfill those intents?
Click to expand...
I use the grand marnier in my pate. Makes a difference.

Russ
 
Sorry I can't recommend any brandies because I really dislike them - I find them far too harsh. But I don't like any spirit which is drunk neat so that's not really surprising.

flyinglentris said:
I was looking for a dessert brandy that could be used by itself, as an ingredient in desserts or as a flavoring for my coffee. Some brandy is further distilled with fruit added to the mix.

The only brandy, so it turns out, that I have ever tried, is a cognac, - Grand Marnier Orange, which I have used for cooking in the past.

Given my purpose, has anyone any suggestions for a good dessert brandy that would fulfill those intents?
Click to expand...

I'm not really sure what you mean by a dessert brandy ....its not a phrase I've ever come across before.

If you're going to cook with it or add it to coffees, then you could probably use just about any decent quality brandy....you really aren't going to be able to taste the subtle differences between them.

But you also mention that you've been using Grand Marnier (which as has already been mentioned is actually a liqueur, not a brandy) - which is a very different thing and much much sweeter. So what are you actually looking for? A liqueur: something similar to Grand Marnier which is sweet and may have fruit flavours, or something just for the alcohol heat but no sweetness?

For drinking (though I've never tried cooking with it) I can definitely recommend Pineau des Charentes (or the Armagnac version Floc de Gascogne). These are brandy-based drinks and are quite similar to dessert wines (though not quite so sweet). Traditionally they're served as apéritifs rather than digestifs, but no-one says you have to stick to tradition :wink:
 
MrsDangermouse said:
I'm not really sure what you mean by a dessert brandy ....its not a phrase I've ever come across before.

If you're going to cook with it or add it to coffees, then you could probably use just about any decent quality brandy....you really aren't going to be able to taste the subtle differences between them.

But you also mention that you've been using Grand Marnier (which as has already been mentioned is actually a liqueur, not a brandy) - which is a very different thing and much much sweeter. So what are you actually looking for? A liqueur: something similar to Grand Marnier which is sweet and may have fruit flavours, or something just for the alcohol heat but no sweetness?

For drinking (though I've never tried cooking with it) I can definitely recommend Pineau des Charentes (or the Armagnac version Floc de Gascogne). These are brandy-based drinks and are quite similar to dessert wines (though not quite so sweet). Traditionally they're served as apéritifs rather than digestifs, but no-one says you have to stick to tradition :wink:
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A dessert brandy reflects upon the diversity of brandy. It would be an after meal beverage. There are at the high end, champagne brandies and at the low end, simple brandies that are aged less than two years or not at all. All brandies are distilled wine and they are much more diverse in their characteristics than I had ever thought.

Grand Marnier is a cognac and thus, a brandy. It is referred to as an orange liqueur, but that's just a vendor label.
 
flyinglentris said:
A dessert brandy reflects upon the diversity of brandy. It would be an after meal beverage. There are at the high end, champagne brandies and at the low end, simple brandies that are aged less than two years or not at all. All brandies are distilled wine and they are much more diverse in their characteristics than I had ever thought.

Grand Marnier is a cognac and thus, a brandy. It is referred to as an orange liqueur, but that's just a vendor label.
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All brandy is traditionally a digestif (ie. after the meal), but like I said, dessert brandy is not a term I've ever come across before. Maybe its a common description in North America, but its not a classification in common usage in Europe as far as I'm aware. Which is why I was asking you about what you meant by it.

Grand Marnier is not a Cognac or a brandy....it is a Cognac-based liqueur. Liqueurs are a specific type of drink, not just a vendor label. They are created from a base of a distilled spirit which is sweetened by the addition of oils, fruit extracts, cream etc. The base sprit can be a recognised sprit (eg. brandy, vodka, whisk(e)y) or it can be a spirit specifically distilled for the purpose. Liqueurs also tend to be lower ABV than the base spirit. Another famous orange liqueur is Cointreau.

Champagne Cognac (not brandy!) refers to where the grapes are grown, its not necessarily a descriptor of quality. To be called a Champagne Cognac the grapes must be grown within the Grande- or Petit-Champagne areas of Cognac.

cognac-map.jpg
 
flyinglentris said:
Brandy is wine, distilled further to concentrate the sugars and flavors.
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Its not necessarily made from grapes. Brandy can be made from other fruits:

The difference between cognac and brandy

Put simply, cognac is brandy from the Cognac region of south-west France – but how do grapes, geography, time, craftsmanship, wood and weather all come into it?

As the people of Cognac in south-west France will proudly tell you, all cognac is brandy – but very little brandy is cognac. Brandy, in fact, needn't even be made from grapes, since the term refers to any distilled spirit made from fermented fruit juice.

While grapes are often the starting point for brandy, there are very nice versions made from apples, pears and other fruits. Think of calvados made from apple and pear, or the plum brandy nursed by a lone woman in a celebrated 1870s bar painting by Édouard Manet.
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