The making of Cognac: How burnt wine became a thing

The drink that we know today as Cognac started off as a very different entity. Whether it was an effort to concentrate wine for ease of transport (and protecting against spoilage) or a way to preserve excess wine which had remained unsold in a year, it caught on as a drink in its own right.

The process of distillation didn’t start with Cognac. In fact, distillation as a science dates back to much earlier times when alchemists from places are far-flung as China, India and Egypt tried to make the elixir of life and to this end, they started by trying to make gold from lead by heating it in various solutions. Over time, the process, these alchemists learned, helped them to concentrate the essences of various natural substances - from fruits and flowers to roots and other organic material. Some had therapeutic value, others just smelt good (the first perfumes!) but all in all, in a bid to find the key to immortality they did end up advancing medicinal sciences a fair bit.

Alcohol was found to be a good base for these extractions. Unlike with water, the results were more encouraging and the final result also could be preserved for longer. And this is the first that we hear of distillation of alcohol, not as a recreational beverage but as a medium to preserve extracts and prepare tinctures.

Making Cognac is a two-step distillation process. The raw material for making a good Cognac is white wine (made from specified grapes in the demarcated region) which is low alcohol and extremely sour. By itself, the wine is insipid but it makes a great base for Cognac. The prescribed grapes (Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, Colombard) have been chosen to yield precisely this type of a wine as it works well - the alcohol will get concentrated through distillation and the sourness will result in a lovely mouthfeel to carry all the natural flavors.

But it’s not just the grapes for where they come from in the region will change their aromatic profile and tactile structure. Grande and Petite Champagne, the heartlands of the Cognac region, will yield floral spirits that age well. Spirits made with grapes from the Borderies will bring more heavy aromas and also some structural weight to the blend. And spirits originating from Fins Bois and Bois Ordinaire are fruity and although good, tend to age quicker so are generally used for the entry-level blends.

The Charentais Still is the only one allowed to be used to make Cognac and it is not too different from a standard copper pot still save for a few minor differences. The idea is simple, wine is first heated in a chamber before being introduced into the boiler head (called Chapiteau) which is made of copper or, in the interest of keeping costs low, copper-lined. The vapors evaporate from here and pass through a curvy part of the pipe (called Swan’s neck) before being run through a coiled section of tubes (called Serpentin). This coiled pipe is situated inside a container which holds the wine waiting to be introduced into the boiler. Thus the hot fumes passing through the pipe heat up the wine around it and in turn cool down back into liquid state. That is the principle of the Heat Exchanger which effectively helps preserve some energy. The precipitated liquid (now called Eau de vie) will be re-distilled and that is where we get the final spirit.

Ideally the liquid emerging at the very beginning and towards the end are not considered great to keep. This “head-heart-tail" cut is not an easy decision to make and requires years of experience before one knows exactly what they wish to withhold and how they will work it into their final blend. The Eaux de Vie (plural) are now transferred into barrels where they will age indefinitely.