Finally onto traditional brandy distilled from wine, starting with this Spanish example. Smells of raisin, plum, caramel, and oak. The taste is fruity and lightly sweet with flavors of raisin, plum, fig, vanilla, cinnamon, and a hint of cherry. The finish is long and smooth with just a hint of burn at the end, featuring notes of oak, caramel, vanilla, maple syrup, and dark chocolate. Overall, this brandy is phenomenal. Full disclosure: this is the first bottle of brandy I’ve purchased other than some E&J long ago in college, but I love everything about this spirit; it’s smooth, it has more layers of complexity than I can count, and it’s all perfectly balanced. I can’t wait to try this in some cocktails.
A sidecar is well rounded with notes of caramel, brown sugar, and a hint of oak underneath.
A Brandy Rose is fantastic, the stone fruit and brown sugar notes pairing exceptionally well with the grenadine; my favorite version of this cocktail so far.
The Apple Jack cocktail is deliciously savory and reminiscent of an apple pie and/or caramel apple; simply divine.
An Old Fashioned is also quite smooth and well balanced, though somehow the brandy flavors are much more subtle than expected.
A sangria made with this and Campo Viejo Garnacha is well structured and quite fruity. Essentially a fruit punch with hints of citrus peels; dangerously drinkable.