How to Drink Brandy?

There are so many questions online about drinking brandy alcohol - much more than you might think. How to serve and drink brandy, brandy recipes, if it can be drunk on its own, what to mix with it, brandy plus fruit juices, if it can go bad, and when it should be drunk. Some even ask for the best kind of cup to serve your brandy drink in.

All these questions need answers, and there are. Just that the answers are scattered all over the internet. How about we try to combine them all in one article? We will provide answers to all these questions and more in this guide. So, if you are down for that, you can keep reading.

What Is Brandy?

Let’s start at the top. Alcohol is divided into distilled and undistilled drinks. Undistilled drinks are fermented (where the sugar is converted to alcohol). Only wine and beer are under this category. Distilled drinks go further than fermentation. It extracts the water from the drink and intensifies the alcohol content in the drink. Brandy alcohol falls under distilled drinks because it is from the fermented wine or fermented fruit mash. The alcohol content can go from 35% to 60% (70 to 120 US proof).

What Does Brandy Taste Like?

Brandy has a subtle sweet fruity taste. But depending on the age, it can have some concentrated or mild flavor notes. The flavor notes are derived from the casks used to store the brandy during distillation.

Does it go bad?

Brandy, just like Whiskey or Rum, can stay for a long time (we are talking years) without going bad. And because it does not allow for the growth of fungi or bacteria, it cannot spoil or go bad. However, the quality can drop based on two factors; evaporation and oxidation. To prevent these two factors, ensure that the bottle is airtight and kept in a cool, dry, and dark place.

Ways to Drink Brandy

There are a few things you should know about the different ways to drink alcohol. If you know this, you’d know the different methods by which you can drink brandy. Also, you would know what to say when to order a drink in the bar.

1. Neat drink: This is the first way to drink brandy alcohol. Taking alcohol neat means that you are drinking it alone without ice, any sort of mixture, nothing. It is taking your favorite brandy drink, and pouring it into a cup directly - that’s all.
2. Garnish: It’s like this is the opposite of neat. Garnish means that the brandy is served with a twist. To do this, it would be served as a cocktail drink with the zest of some fruits to add flavor.
3. Cocktails: This is the real deal. It is when brandy is served with other ingredients such as flavored syrup, fruit juice, or cream.
4. On the rocks: This just means that you would serve your brandy with ice in the cup. This does not only lower the temperature of the drink but can also soften the alcohol intensity of the brandy.
5. Straight up: It is the milder form of ‘on the rocks.’ Straight-up brandy is chilled. The ice was mixed with the drink but is not present in the cup.

Some Fruits That Go Well With Brandy

Below are a few fruit ideas that would go well with your Brandy, especially if you like your Brandy drink served with a little more flavor. The options include:

• Cranberry Juice
• Orange Juice
• Lemon Juice
• Lime Juice

Some Brandy Cocktail Recipes

You do not need any recipe to drink Brandy neat, straight up, or on the rocks. But when garnishing your Brandy or making it into a cocktail drink, you might need a little guidance. Luckily, we are here to help you out. Here are a few cocktail ideas for your Brandy;

• Calvados Sidecar: You’ll need freshly squeezed lemon juice, Grand Marnier, ice, and calvados or apple brandy. To prepare it, chill a martini glass. Then pour calvados, Grand Marnier, and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker. Add the ice, then shake. Strain it into the chilled martini glass.
• Brandy and Orange Juice Spritzer: You’ll need two ounces of freshly squeezed orange juice, Brandy, two dashes of Peychaud’s bitters, soda water, and an orange wedge for garnishing. To prepare, combine the orange juice, brandy, and bitters into a cocktail shaker. Then add the ice and shake until it is chill. Pour it into a glass filled with ice, add soda, then stir.
• Brandy de Jerez Highball: This Brandy cocktail recipe is very easy to prepare. You’ll need a dash of orange bitters, ginger ale, ice, and two ounces of Brandy de Jerez. To prepare, fill up a highball glass. Then add all the other ingredients and stir.
• Raspberry Pisco Smash: You’ll need 5 mint leaves, 10 raspberries, ice, simple syrup, freshly squeezed lime juice, pisco, club soda, and mint sprig plus lime wheel as a garnish. To prepare this Brandy drink, muddle the raspberries, mint leaves, and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker. Add the pisco, lime juice, and ice to the mixture. Shake to chill, and pour into a Brandy ‘on the rocks’ glass. Add club soda and voila.

Conclusion

Nothing beats proper information. The more informed you are the better prepared you would be. And in this case, the more you’ll enjoy and explore the endless options out there. So, we hope this article has been able to open your mind to new options on Brandy alcohol. If you want to replenish your bar with interesting drinks, do not pass by our best alcohol reviews. Here, you’ll find everything that fits your taste and budget.

FAQs

What does VSOP mean?

It means Very Special (or Superior) old pale. It is also called the reserved or old one and it refers to a Brandy alcohol that is at least four years. It is the acronym used to determine aged Brandy.

What is a Brandy snifter?

This is the kind of glass usually used to serve aged drinks like whiskey or rum. The glass gas a short stem, a wide base, and a narrow top. It is also much shorter than other glass kinds.

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