French brandy makes a quietly impressive Christmas gift. Cognac and Armagnac are both distilled from white grapes and aged in oak, but they come from different corners of south west France, follow different rules and tend to taste different in the glass. Once you know how to read the labels, choosing a bottle becomes much easier. This guide covers the essentials and the bottles we would reach for this year.
Quick picks
- A Cognac that looks the part: François Voyer XO Gold Grande Champagne Carafe, the family's signature Cognac in a carafe with a case.
- Extra age for a VSOP: Paul Giraud VSOP 8 years Grande Champagne, around twice the legal minimum age for a VSOP.
- A year that means something: Delord 1968 Bas Armagnac, distilled from a single harvest.
Cognac and Armagnac: the key differences
Where they come from. Cognac is made in a delimited area covering most of the Charente-Maritime, much of the Charente and a few villages in the Dordogne and Deux-Sèvres. Armagnac comes from Gascony, further south, and is divided into three areas: Bas-Armagnac, Armagnac-Ténarèze and Haut-Armagnac.
How they are distilled. Cognac must be double distilled in batches, and distillation has to finish by 31 March of the year after the harvest, according to the BNIC (the Cognac interprofession). Armagnac is traditionally made in a continuous column still, although some houses, Delord among them, use both continuous and double distillation.
Grapes. Ugni Blanc accounts for 98 percent of the vines in Cognac. Armagnac houses such as Delord work with four traditional grapes: Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, Colombard and Baco.
For a deeper look at each spirit, see our guide to Cognac and our introduction to Armagnac.
Reading a Cognac label: crus and age statements
The Cognac region has six crus: Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fins Bois, Bons Bois and Bois Ordinaires. The BNIC describes Grande Champagne Cognacs as the most renowned and well suited to long barrel ageing, with finesse, length and mainly floral aromas. Petite Champagne is lighter, with floral and fruity notes. A label that says Fine Champagne is a blend of Grande and Petite Champagne with at least 50 percent Grande Champagne.
The age statements refer to the youngest spirit in the blend, and the ageing must happen in oak:
- VS: at least 2 years.
- VSOP: at least 4 years.
- XO: at least 10 years.
These are minimums. Many family houses go well beyond them, which is where the bottles below come in.
Cognac gifts from family houses in Grande Champagne
- François Voyer XO Gold Grande Champagne Carafe: the Chauchet Voyer family in Verrières has distilled and aged its own spirit since the 1870s. XO Gold is a blend of Ugni Blanc eaux de vie the family grows, distils and ages itself, with notes of dried fruit, walnut, hazelnut and spice. The carafe and case make it ready to give.
- Jean Fillioux So Elegantissime XO Carafe: from the La Pouyade estate, family owned since 1894 and now run by the fifth generation. Expect spring flowers, white peach and a long, gently spiced finish. A lovely choice for someone who prefers elegance over power.
- Jean Fillioux Subtil & So VSOP Grande Champagne: a younger Fillioux Cognac, 4 to 6 years old, with fig, citrus, nutmeg and almond paste. Good for someone just getting into Cognac.
- Paul Giraud VSOP 8 years Grande Champagne: made only from Grande Champagne, with much of the blend around 8 years old. The house still harvests by hand. It works neat, and also over ice with a mixer on a warm evening.
- Normandin-Mercier XO Grande Champagne Carafe: the house describes this XO as drinking like a Cognac of 30 years. Full and mellow, with dried fruit, hazelnut, honey and rancio, presented in a carafe in its own wooden frame.
Reading an Armagnac label: areas and vintages
Each bottle names its area: Bas-Armagnac, Armagnac-Ténarèze or Haut-Armagnac. Armagnac-Ténarèze has more limestone and clay in its soils, and its spirit is generally more powerful and suited to longer ageing.
The great draw of Armagnac as a gift is the vintage. According to the BNIA (the Armagnac interprofession), a vintage Armagnac must be made only from grapes harvested in the year on the label and must have aged for at least 10 years. Armagnac stops ageing once it goes into glass, so a bottling date on the label tells you exactly how long it spent in wood.
That makes a vintage Armagnac a natural gift for a birthday or anniversary year. Our birth year spirits guide has more ideas.
Delord vintages: a year in a bottle
Delord is a family house in Lannepax, in the Gers. It goes back to 1893, when Prosper Delord took his still from farm to farm, and today Jacques and Sylvain Delord taste, select and blend. The family grows the four traditional grapes on its own vineyard, and its oldest vintages are kept in glass bonbonnes in a room it calls Paradise. The Delord vintages are bottled at 40 percent.
- Delord 1968 Bas Armagnac: made from Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, Baco and Colombard, each harvested, pressed and vinified separately.
- Delord 1979 Armagnac-Ténarèze: a less common Ténarèze vintage, with cherry, mirabelle plum and almond on the nose and liquorice and bitter orange on the palate.
- Delord 1984 Bas Armagnac: soft and round, with candied orange peel, vanilla, light toffee and dried fruit.
- Delord 1988 Bas Armagnac: distilled from the 1988 harvest and matured in barrel until bottling, a thoughtful way to mark a 1988 anniversary.
Giving and serving tips
- A carafe or a vintage year makes the gift feel personal. For a vintage, check the year against the occasion before you buy.
- Older Cognac and Armagnac reward being sipped slowly. A younger Cognac such as the Paul Giraud VSOP also works over ice with a mixer in summer, or in one of our Christmas cocktails for an Australian summer.
- Buying for several people with different tastes? Our holiday gift guide can help.
Where to start
- A classic Cognac gift: François Voyer XO Gold Carafe or Normandin-Mercier XO Carafe.
- Floral and elegant: Jean Fillioux So Elegantissime XO.
- New to Cognac: Paul Giraud VSOP 8 years or Jean Fillioux Subtil & So VSOP.
- A meaningful year: Delord 1968, 1979, 1984 or 1988.
- Browse further: our Cognac collection, our Armagnac collection and the Delord vintage collection.
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