A pleasant sight of nectar in the goblet, layers of aromas on the nose and a burst of flavors on the palate – this is what Cognac does – it opens your senses to a new reality.

And this is also why it has been a hallowed and much revered spirit in the drinkers’ collective consciousness world over. For about a century now, Cognac has been synonymous with luxury, sophistication and style.

Cognac Remy Martin VSOP

With that as a background, I was naturally thrilled to get an opportunity of being a part of a selected few to attend a Cognac Masterclass featuring the Remy Martin VSOP, conducted by the knowledgeable and suave international wine expert and promoter, Colonel Joe.

Masterclass by Colonel Joe

During the course of the session he guided us through the relevant details about Cognac which included its origin, manufacturing process, types, style, price etc and also brought out some folklore and interesting facts associated about the tipple.

Selected consumer audience

It was certainly an informative masterclass which was delivered in a simple, effective and an interactive manner. Out of his exhaustive brief I have highlighted a selected few interesting facets of Cognac.

5 Interesting Facts of Cognac

1.      Cognac is a type of brandy which is produced by double distillation of white wines and by ageing – a wine is made first by the standard fermentation of grapes, and the most common grape used for this is the Ugni Blanc (which is Trebbiano in Italy). This is double distilled (in special Pot Stills) to produce a spirit called as Eaux de Vie (Water of Life), which is then aged in oak barrels to produce Cognac.

2.      It comes in various styles, significant of which are the VS (Very Special), VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale) and the XO (Extra Old) denoting the minimum age of the youngest wine as 2, 4 and 6 years respectively.

3.      You can make cocktails with Cognac – though it comes across as a serious drink (which it is) and can be quite intimidating however, herein also lies the versatility of the drink as it offers multiple avenues of consumption including Cocktails. Sidecar (Cognac, Cointreau, lemon juice) was one such cognac based classic cocktail that was featured and tasted during the masterclass.

4.      James Bond knows Cognac – In Goldfinger, Bond says this about cognac –
“….I’d say it was a 30 year old fine indifferently blended Sir,…with an overdose of Bon Bois” ….thereby demonstrating his superior knowledge of the drink to Colonel Smither, an executive banker from the Bank of England.

5.      Last but not the least is “Cognac Sharaab Nahi Hoti (Cognac is not alcohol)” – this is the dialogue delivered by Sridevi, the legendary actress of Indian cinema, in the Hindi movie called “Chandani’. She says these lines and goes on to drink the cognac and dance. The dialogue became famous and the movie was a hit.

Watch my exclusive interview with Colonel Joe where he talks about Cognac and Remy Martin. The interaction was unscripted and spontaneous.

Do share your views and experience of Cognac. Cheers.