Brandy ... French Dictionary «Petit Larousse» calls it "Living Water". Birth of brandy - a complex process that lasts for years and decades.
In the words of Jean-Paul Camus: "To produce a wonderful cognac is easy. Everything you need for this - great-grandfather, father and grandfather who dedicated his life to this ...

Today's story is from the cool, damp and smelling of oak cellar with hundreds of carefully stacked barrels of maturing golden drink ..


This report has been made in the south of the Crimea, at the foot of Mount Castel. Here, in 1871 the estate of a retired professor of the St. Petersburg Medico-Surgical Academy EA Golubev was based winery, vineyards, laid the European varieties and cut out the gallery for aging wine in barrels.
Today it is a modern brandy-wine factory "Maglev", specializing in the manufacture of brandy and grappa.

The material was prepared with the assistance of the Ministry of Tourism and Resorts of Crimea.
We call it a brandy. The same is indicated on the label, but it is correct to say "Brandy," if the drink is not made ​​in the vicinity of Cognac in France. Who is allowed to write the name of the drink "cognac" in Latin, and in our countries of brandy and continues to be called cognac.

The main white grape variety from which the brandy is Ugni Blanc - slowly maturing variety with high acidity, high yield and disease resistance - gray rot and phylloxera.

In addition to Ugni Blanc, also sometimes cultivated and used in the manufacture of brandy varieties Folle Blanche, Colombard and Montilla. They give a more flavorful and rich in taste alcohol than Ugni Blanc, but it is very difficult to grow. Harvesting usually takes place in households in October.
Harvested grapes are exposed to pressing in the traditional flat horizontal presses. The resulting juice is left to ferment without the addition of sugar. After three weeks, young dry wine, Blanc de Blanc (about 8% alcohol) is sent to distillation (the Charentais method, which has reached us intact), where it passes through two stages of boiling, get cognac alcohol.
Brandy spirit produced in Charentais distillation cube consisting of a heated over an open fire of the extraction of the boiler, the boiler cap and curved tubes, which then transforms into a coil, passing through the cooler.

The company "Maglev", the classical copper stills Swiss company «Arnold Holstein», which provide up to 50 days gave the ethyl alcohol each. During the period of distillation (from December 1 to April 1), plant distillation of the plant up to 100 thousand dal cognac.
Effective April 1 (which is allowed before, but this report are from this date), brandy spirit aged in oak barrels (270 to 450 liters) at a constant temperature of 15 °. In these barrels can mature from 2 to 50 years. The natural moisture, which holds the barrel, is one of the determining factors in the process of aging. During this time the cognac alcohol loses some of its strength, and the oak gives an amber color and pleasant taste. Go natural qualities of the oak develops a bouquet of brandy, produced a special flavor, known as the ranch.
For the maturation of brandy in barrels used galleries, even laid down by Professor Golubev in the XIX century. They were reconstructed and equipped according to modern requirements and are used for aging brandy in the old and new barrels. Now in these galleries are aged over 80 thousand dal future amber drink. Against the far wall of the gallery you can see the silent observer - a huge brass corkscrew.
That is, leaning on a wooden handle wet basement wall
After the drink has passed all stages of the "miraculous" transformation of the turn of the most important step - mixing brandy with different characteristics. The most important role in this process is the Master of cognac, or as it is called - the master footer.

In most cases, brandy, as a final product that gets to the consumer, prepared by assamblirovaniya (or mixing) cognac extracts from different years. In this excerpt of the final product is determined by the minimum period of aging components. With mass production of cognac assamblirovanie to support this same organoleptic properties, regardless of the quality of grapes.
Only then is the latest stage - filling
Modern technology allows the filling line bottling beverages cold process membrane. First, an empty bottle mounted on a tape technology ...
... At which it falls into a special chamber, where it is filled with inert gas before filling. This prevents further oxidation drink with the air space inside the bottle, as at loading and during subsequent storage in the bottle after closing.
Brandy gets into the bottle through a sterile membrane filter, which is to install two-stage filtration Candle. The meaning of the installation is that it removes all of the drink viable microorganisms, while maintaining the organoleptic qualities of cognac.
Further, the line filled with bottles arrive at the capping
Machine with the necessary force compresses the cork
The next time you drink breathe fresh air, someone's already on the table ..
Mandatory procedure for filling lines - brokerage. "Specially trained people," stares at the bottle of brandy, slowly drifting in front of a light screen. The objective of this girl to see third-party impurities that are not allowed to drink according to the standard HASSP 22000. Girls are replaced on schedule to avoid the effects of fatigue and eye zamylennogo
Sticker labels. Today it is a brandy "Alushta"
Excise stamp.
Laying in the boxes
At the plant, "Maglev".
From the terrace above the galleries with beautiful views of the Black Sea
Here, at the plant, is a cozy tasting room.
Full cage production plant
Designed in classical style shop-room with the production plant

Incidentally, an interesting fact - during the reconstruction of tunnels, was found in the cache key to the wine cellars of Professor Golubev. Employees of enterprises consider this finding a good sign, and carefully store it in a glass

Also kept under glass prestigious awards and diplomas obtained wines Professor Golubev in the XIX and early XX century.