Is Vintage wine really the best?
When it comes to wine, vintage is ‘supposed’ to be the best… and with a very few exceptions, it usually is. A wine’s vintage simply tells you which year the grapes that were used to make it were picked.
Most wines come from a single vintage, and the label on the bottle shows the year in which the wine was made.
Irish Cream liqueurs
Irish Cream liqueurs are a blend of Irish Whiskey, fresh cream, infusions of coffee, and/or chocolate and as some producers claim; several other secret ingredients!
Well those secret additions may be the point of difference with many brands but I thought I would offer a few observations on a small selection of what’s available.
A Short History of Spanish Brandy
Continuing our tour of wine producing countries we arrive in Spain on this occasion to find out about Spanish Brandy.
Now I am sure when you have been on holiday to this great country you will have tried in some form or another, this spirit. It might be then surprising to learn that Spanish brandy is older than any French spirit!
Armagnac
This spirit is arguably the oldest in France. It was first distilled in the early to mid 15th century.
The growing and production area is situated in the area south of Bordeaux, in western France and has a long viticultural history stretching back to the Romans.
The Story of Spirits
Who would have thought that one of the world’s most prestigious Cognacs was first created by an Englishman from Beaminster in Dorset, England!
A man called Thomas Hine.
The Cognac they call Courvoisier
It started in the early 1800s with a chance meeting of two respected merchants who became business partners and created what is considered by some to be the finest superior Cognac in the world.
The men were Emmanuel Courvoisier and Louis Gallois.
The 5 main stages of Malt Whisky production:
Malting, Mashing, Fermentation, Distillation and Maturation.
But the main important ingredient in the whisky which nearly all distillers emphasize is the water!