Dutch brandy (, ) is a

distilled spirit Liquor ( , sometimes hard liquor), spirits, distilled spirits, or spiritous liquor are alcoholic drinks produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. While the w ...

made from either

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

molasses Molasses () is a viscous byproduct, principally obtained from the refining of sugarcane or sugar beet juice into sugar. Molasses varies in the amount of sugar, the method of extraction, and the age of the plant. Sugarcane molasses is usuall ...

alcohol flavored with various essences and extracts produced in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. It was formerly referred to as "Dutch cognac" until that name was legally restricted to grape brandy from the

Cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the Communes of France, commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the Departments of France, departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cogn ...

region of France. Dutch names included or (cognac drunk by , i.e. carriage riders) or (Dutch Cognac). Its colour ranges from clear to dark brown, reflecting added caramel or artificial dye.

Production

Dutch brandy is based on either

alcohol, with added essences and extracts to produce a particular taste. These may include fusel oil, amyl alcohols,

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

esters In chemistry, an ester is a chemical compound, compound derived from an acid (either organic or inorganic) in which the hydrogen atom (H) of at least one acidic hydroxyl group () of that acid is replaced by an organyl group (R). These compounds c ...

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

curls,

prune A prune is a dried plum, most commonly from the European plum (''Prunus domestica'') tree. Not all plum species or varieties can be dried into prunes. Use of the term ''prune'' for fresh plums is obsolete except when applied to varieties of ...

extract and the concentrated liquids obtained from

liquorice Liquorice ( Commonwealth English) or licorice (American English; see spelling differences; ) is the common name of ''Glycyrrhiza glabra'', a flowering plant of the bean family Fabaceae, from the root of which a sweet, aromatic flavouring is ...

root (''Glycyrrhiza glabra'', Dutch "zoethoutwortel"). Any Dutch brandy is supposed to contain at least 35% of

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

, and not more than 20 grammes of sugar per litre. Usually, a little real cognac,

eau-de-vie An ''eau de vie'' (French language, French for distilled beverage, spirit, §16, §17 ) is a clear, colourless fruit brandy that is produced by means of fermentation and double distillation. The fruit flavor is typically very light. In Englis ...

or other grape-based distilled product is added. The brown colour of vieux can be obtained using

caramel Caramel ( or ) is a range of food ingredients made by heating sugars to high temperatures. It is used as a flavoring in puddings and desserts, as a filling in bonbons or candy bars, as a topping for ice cream and custard, and as a colorant ...

or an artificial colouring.

History

Although the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

(1919) already forbade the name "Cognac" from being applied to products produced outside of the French

region, Dutch brandy continued to be sold using it until the 1960s. The packaging (often including stars) was clearly derived from cognac packaging. Pressure from the French government led to a specific Dutch law banning its use, ratified by the Dutch Supreme Court in a trade treaty with France on 1 June 1956. Dutch brandy producers decided upon the name "vieux", French for "old", which had already been used before and which did not provide any pronunciation difficulties. The term is and was often used to describe old Dutch brandy ("Cognac Vieux"). Although its manufacturers feared a decline in sales due to the name change, the opposite occurred. Older people prefer it in traditional ways, by itself or with coffee, younger mixed with

cola Cola is a Carbonation, carbonated soft drink flavored with vanilla, cinnamon, citrus essential oil, oils, and other flavorings. Cola became popular worldwide after the American pharmacist John Stith Pemberton invented Coca-Cola, a trademarked br ...

. Initially Dutch brandy had a cheap public image, in spite of attempting to borrow Cognac's prestige. Most manufacturers sought to distance themselves from even their own product. Lucas Bols, for example, used the name "Parade Vieux" (with the Dutch advertisement slogan "Pa pakt Parade" – "Dad picks Parade"), and disclaimed production by crediting its production to "Distillery Westertoren" rather than the official name of their facility. After Dutch brandy's reputation improved, the Parade name was changed to "Bols Vieux".

Statistics

In 2009, Dutch brandy was the fifth most popular distilled beverage in the Netherlands by consumption percentage (after Jonge

Jenever Jenever (, ), also known as Hollands, genever, genièvre, peket, or sometimes as Dutch gin (archaic: Holland gin or Geneva gin), is the juniper-flavoured traditional liquor in the Netherlands, Belgium, and adjoining areas in northern France ...

whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from Fermentation in food processing, fermented grain mashing, mash. Various grains (which may be Malting, malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, Maize, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky ...

liqueur A liqueur ( , ; ) is an alcoholic drink composed of Liquor, spirits (often rectified spirit) and additional flavorings such as sugar, fruits, herbs, and spices. Often served with or after dessert, they are typically heavily sweetened and un-age ...

and

rum Rum is a liquor made by fermenting and then distilling sugarcane molasses or sugarcane juice. The distillate, a clear liquid, is often aged in barrels of oak. Rum originated in the Caribbean in the 17th century, but today it is produced i ...

). Its 5.9% market share was on a par with Beerenburg.

Companies and brands

Dutch brandy is made by a variety of distilleries, though several of them are owned (at least in name) by the Herman Jansen group (previously UTO). Vieux brands include Het Anker, Bestevaer, Bootz (made by Bols), Boots, Dujardin (made by Wenneker, who sell their regular 35% "Dujardin Blue label" as well as the more exclusive 38% "Vieux Superieur Gold Label"), Floryn, Henkes (made by Bols), Hooghoudt, Hoppe (made by Bols), Hulsink, De Kuyper, Legner Fine Vieille (not officially named "Vieux" as it only contains 30% of alcohol), Olifant and Plantiac (made by Boomsma).

References

''Juridische Aspecten van Geografische Aanduidingen'', Barbara M. Vroom-Cramer, Kluwer BV, 2002,

External links

{{Alcoholic beverages Dutch distilled drinks Brandies