Brandy de Jerez is produced by the sherry manufacturers mostly around the city of Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. Most Brandy de Jerez is actually made from wine produced from all over Spain, mostly from grapes in La Mancha and Extremadura since as the local sherry grapes are too expensive so as to convert them into Brandy.



Today most of the distilling process is done all over Spain using column stills. Then, its delivered to Jerez for aging in used sherry casks for the solera system which is similar to the one used for sherry wine. Solera is large casks each of them holding a somewhat older spirit than the one previous. When brandy is drawn off from the last cask (one third of the volume is taken out) it is refilled with brandy from the next cask in line all the way down the solera line to the first cask in which new brandy is added. This system of refilling the brandy through casks blends together a variety of vintages and this has the result of speeding up of the maturation of the brandy.

Brandy de Jerez Solera must age for a minimum of six months, Reserva for one year and Gran Reserva for a minimum of three years. Actually, the best Reservas and Gran Reservas are aged for 12 to 15 years. The lush, somewhat sweet and fruity found in Brandy de Jerez come from the use of fruit-based flavor concentrates and oak essence.

Penedes Brandy is made in the Penedes region of Cataluna in the northeast of Spain near Barcelona. It is very similar to the Cognac of France and is made from a mixture of regional grapes and locally-grown Ugni Blanc of Cognac, it is also distilled in pot stills. Torres is one of the major producers and ages the brandy in solera consisting of casks made from Limousin oak from France, while the other (Mascaro) ages in the standard non-solera method but also in Limousin oak. This brandy is heartier than Cognac and isleaner and drier than brandy de Jerez.

Brandy from Italy

Italy also has a history of brandy manufacturing which dates back to the 16th century, but unlike Spain or France Italy has no specific brandy regions. Brandy from Italy are made from locally grown wine grapes and produced in column stills. Today there are some small artisanal producers that use pot stills. This brandy is also aged in oak for a minimum of one to two years and the industry average is between six to eight years. Brandy from Italy are light and delicate with a small touch of sweetness.

Bandy from Germany

Monks from Germany were distilling brandy as early as the 14th century and by 1588 they already has their own guild. Unlike the previous countries mentioned, Brandy from Germany was made with imported wine rather than local wine. Alike the other countries mentioned, brandy is produced in pot stills and aged for a minimum of six months in oak. Brandy aged in oak for at least one year are called ?older brandy?. The top quality brandy from Germany are smooth, lighter than Cognac and have a small touch of sweetness.