SC - cognac

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Mark Schuldenfrei wrote:

> Hmmm.  Like most strong beverages, cognac has a certain bite.  It also has a
> natural smokey kind of complexity, not like the peaty flavor of scotch, but
> sharper in the nose.  It also has a vanilla sort of texture.  A light brown
> color, a very warm and inviting smell.  In large gulps, it can be veyr
> sharp, and it must be sipped slowly, so that the wonderful fumes can wash
> into your nose as you savor it.  It takes me a good 45 minutes to drink an
> ounce.  Or longer.

Just a drop to add: some vintages (a year's "crop" of wine from a given
vineyard) are better than others. Some make better brandy than others.
Part of the way to remove some of the more unpleasant impurities is by
aging under fairly stable, controlled conditions. Generally this
involves storage for up to several years in a cask (usually oak), under
fairly constant temperature and humidity (usually in cellars).

I like marc myself, another variety. It's a little more barbaric in
nature, rather like the Italian grappa.
> 
> I know of no recipes that call for it, but I have some empty glasses
> into which it conforms smartly.  (:-)

Yeah, me too! One of the reasons you're unlikely to find references to
such brandy in period recipes is that it would have been regarded as for
medicinal use, at least officially. The Irish author Malachy McCormick
speaks of his grandmother's justification for the occasional nip of
whisky:
	"Sure, an' I drinks it like a physic!" 
> 
>         Tibor

Adamantius' 2 sesterces