Cognac Still

[cookinaz]

Hi;

Does anyone understand how Cognac is made?

I've been looking at Cognac stills, and have found very little that describes the operation. It looks like the distillate is fed through a smaller pot (not quite a thumper) that pre-heats the next batch of wine. The middle pot (not quite a thumper) is then drained into the boiler and distillation resumes. What is going on?

[BWFiggins]

Wow, you are interested in brandy? Welcome aboard!

You pretty much have it. The next batch is getting pre-heated by a 'chauffe-vin' while the current batch is being distilled. The flame-heated Cognac still, or alambic Charentaise, is the simplest and truest of the pot stills, and the distillate always requires a second distillation to obtain cask strength.

I have the country's most complete library of books on brandy production, so please write if you have a "burning" question that ought to be answered off-site. Please consider attending ADI's brandy seminar in April 2009.

All the very best,

Berle "Rusty" Figgins, Jr

Dynamic Alambic Artisan Distillers

Mattawa, Washington

BWFiggins@DynamicAlambic.com

Hi;

Does anyone understand how Cognac is made?

I've been looking at Cognac stills, and have found very little that describes the operation. It looks like the distillate is fed through a smaller pot (not quite a thumper) that pre-heats the next batch of wine. The middle pot (not quite a thumper) is then drained into the boiler and distillation resumes. What is going on?

[will]

the goofy gizmo in the middle is both a pre-condenser and pre-heater for the next charge. it's an energy conservation device as much as anything. because if where it's positioned, it does not change the behavior of the still - it could be omitted. in other words, you don't need it to make brandy. you can't make cognac except in the cognac region of france.

[Osocalis]

Hi;

Does anyone understand how Cognac is made?

I've been looking at Cognac stills, and have found very little that describes the operation. It looks like the distillate is fed through a smaller pot (not quite a thumper) that pre-heats the next batch of wine. The middle pot (not quite a thumper) is then drained into the boiler and distillation resumes. What is going on?

There is quite a rich literature on the subject and even more information to be had with a simple visit to any distillery making Cognac or brandies of any origin using the method Charentais.

Suffice it to say a thumper is something to ‘catch’ and then redistill marc that would have pushed over the Col de Cygne (here I use the French terms but the same pieces are essentially on every still in one form or another). This would be a disaster for high quality brandy as well as high quality whiskey (thus the absence of a thumper on a Scotch still). However, for moonshiners time was of the essence thus the use of a thumper to ‘protect’ the eau de vie from contamination with marc.

The chauffe-vin is just that, it is a vessel that pre-heats the next batch of wine (never used with brouillis). This not only saves energy but also changes the character of the final brandy via the slow (~4-6 hr) low temperature cooking of the wine in the chauffe-vin. This is neither a plus nor a minus but, a definitive style (Rémy-Martin requires the use of a pre-heater other houses require that a pre-heater not be used as it is not part of the house style).

If all the details of the method Charentais could be had in this forum, there would be no sense in professing the ‘craft’ of distillation. It would indeed, turn into a ‘paint by the numbers masterpiece’. I encourage all those interested in these subjects to taste the great distillates of the world and then make a trip to the far reaches of the globe to see and hopefully gain a better understanding of the production methods and most importantly the reasoning behind the methodologies.

[Osocalis]

Oops,

On reading my post and the original question I realized there might be some confusion as to the nature of a thumper and a chauffe-vin. There is really a profound difference between these two pieces. The chauffe-vin is vessel that holds wine and has a closed tube running through the center connecting the col de cygne directly to the serpentin. Thus, there is no mass transfer to the chauffe de vin only heat transfer. The thumper is a vessel that is open to the vapors (and heaven forbid liquid) coming over the col de cygne. Some of this material recondenses to liquid and collects in the thumper. The vapor from the col de cygne then passes through this collected liquid before passing to the serpentin. Thus, the ‘thump’.

[cookinaz]

Oops,

On reading my post and the original question I realized there might be some confusion as to the nature of a thumper and a chauffe-vin. There is really a profound difference between these two pieces. The chauffe-vin is vessel that holds wine and has a closed tube running through the center connecting the col de cygne directly to the serpentin. Thus, there is no mass transfer to the chauffe de vin only heat transfer. The thumper is a vessel that is open to the vapors (and heaven forbid liquid) coming over the col de cygne. Some of this material recondenses to liquid and collects in the thumper. The vapor from the col de cygne then passes through this collected liquid before passing to the serpentin. Thus, the ‘thump’.

Right; I could tell that only heat was exchanged between the chauffe-vin and the distillate. When I first looked at it, I thought maybe it there for continuous distillation. Further reading revealed that it is used in batch mode though.

We have no "methode Charentais" distillers in AZ, an only one running distillery as far as I know, so I would have to take a little trip somewhere to actually see a Charentais still in action. Maybe next year. Who makes good quality American brandy in the cognac style. Can the bottle say it was made in the Cognac style, or méthode-Charentais (similar to méthode champenoise)?

This year, I'm learning wine-making from a local vitner and learning viticulture from a local grower as we have no surplusses of grapes in AZ and I may have to grow my own if I want to get serious with this. My wife is already resigned to the fact that a corner of our lot will soon have grapes growing in it :-). She's assured me, she's NOT taking care of them however :-).

Anyway, I got side-tracked there a bit. Thanks for the response and I understand that no formula can be followed; I just want to learn as much as I can with the resources I have.

Brett

[Charles@AEppelTreow]

<off topic aside>

Even the 'methode champenoise' isn't that generic. I couldn't get a label approved with it. I've seen 'methode traditionale' as an alternative popping up more and more. I ended up with 'fermented in this bottle' on my MC cider and perry. Emphasis on _this_.

</off topic aside>

[cookinaz]

Wow, you are interested in brandy? Welcome aboard!

You pretty much have it. The next batch is getting pre-heated by a 'chauffe-vin' while the current batch is being distilled. The flame-heated Cognac still, or alambic Charentaise, is the simplest and truest of the pot stills, and the distillate always requires a second distillation to obtain cask strength.

I have the country's most complete library of books on brandy production, so please write if you have a "burning" question that ought to be answered off-site. Please consider attending ADI's brandy seminar in April 2009.

All the very best,

Berle "Rusty" Figgins, Jr

Dynamic Alambic Artisan Distillers

Mattawa, Washington

BWFiggins@DynamicAlambic.com

Berle (Rusty);

I sent you a PM. Check it out.

Brett