Brandy (from brandywine, derived from Dutch brandewijn — "burnt wine") is a spirit produced by distilling wine, the wine having first been produced by fermenting grapes. Brandy generally contains 36%–60% alcohol by volume and is typically taken as an after-dinner drink. While some brandies are aged in wooden casks, most are coloured with caramel colouring to imitate the effect of such aging.

Brandy can also be made from fermented fruit (i.e., other than grapes) and from pomace.

Types of brandy

There are three main types of brandy. The term "brandy" denotes grape brandy if the type is not otherwise specified.

Grape brandy

Grape brandy is produced by the distillation of fermented grapes.

• American grape brandy is almost always from California. Popular brands include Christian Brothers, Coronet, E&J, Korbel, Paul Masson and J. Bavet.

• Armagnac is made from grapes of the Armagnac region in Southwest of France (Gers, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne). It is single-continuous distilled in a copper still and aged in oaken casks from Gascony or Limousin. Armagnac was the first distilled spirit in France. Armagnacs have a specificity: they offer vintage qualities. Popular brands are Darroze, Baron de Sigognac, Larressingle, Delord, Laubade, Gélas and Janneau.

thumb|Brandy de Jerez barrels aging

• Brandy de Jerez is a brandy that originates from vineyards around Jerez de la Frontera in southern Spain.It is used in some sherries and is also available as a separate product. It has a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO). The traditional production method has three characteristics: (1) Aged in American oaken casks with a capacity of 500 litres, previously having contained sherry. (2) The use of the traditional aging system of Criaderas and Soleras. (3) Aged exclusively within the municipal boundaries of Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Santa María, and Sanlúcar de Barrameda in the province of Cádiz.

• Cognac comes from the Cognac region in France, and is double distilled using pot stills. Popular brands include Hine, Martell, Rémy Martin, Hennessy, Ragnaud-Sabourin, Delamain and Courvoisier.

• Pisco is produced in Peru and Chile.

• Portugal: Lourinhã, located in western Portugal, is one of the few brandy-making areas, besides Cognac and Armagnac, that have received appellation status.

• South African South African grape brandies are, by law, made almost exactly as in Cognac, using a double-distillation process in copper pot stills followed by aging in oak barrels for a minimum of three years. Because of this, South African brandies are of a very high quality. A popular brand is Klipdrift.