Brandy

In the early 16th century, a Dutchman trader invented the way to ship more wine in the limited cargo space by removing water from the wine. Then he could add the water back to the concentrated wine at the destination port in Holland. They called it “brandewijn,” meaning “burned wine,” and later became “brandy.

Most wine-producing countries also make brandy. Outstanding French brandies include cognac, from the Charente and Charente-Maritime départements of France, usually considered the finest of all brandies, and Armagnac, from the Gers region. The sherry-producing centres of Spain and the port-producing centres of Portugal are also known for brandy. Greek brandy includes Metaxa, sweetened and usually darkened with caramel, and ouzo, colourless and flavoured with anise or licorice. American brandy, produced mainly in California, tends to be neutral and uniform in character. Pisco, mainly produced in Peru, is distilled from muscat wines. Brandies distilled from grape pomace, or marc, the material remaining in the winepress after grape pressing, include the French eau-de-vie de marc, for which Burgundy is well known, and grappa, an unaged, sharp-tasting brandy produced in both Italy and California.