If brandy drinkers are heroes, cognac is reserve for the gods and goddesses. The Cognacais observe that all cognac is brandy, but not all brandy is cognac, thus distinguishing their product from the rest of the world's - including the rest of France's. Brandy, or burnt wine is made in varying quality, mostly your rudimentary pain killer. Brandy that is entitled to the name cognac comes from one French Valley. Cognac has been a drink traditionally reserved for special occasions - like Champagne. Unlike Champagne it always is served after a meal with ceremony.
Cognac's appearance was accompanied by special camaraderie and defines the end of a meal. In the old days it was enjoyed by men only - women were offered sherry. The mystique extends to cognac, the town and region. The spirit of cognac literally pervades the air and leaves a dark patina on the walls of the town and in the cellars where the liquor is aged.

Because the oak barrels in which cognac acquires its taste and colour are porous, about 2 to 3 percent of the maturing cognac evaporates out into the air. The region of Cognac is on the Atlantic coast of France in the provinces of Charente and Charente - Maritime, 200 miles southwest of Paris, fronting on the Bay of Biscay.

The Gironde River forms the border between Cognac and Bordeaux to the south. The heart of Cognac production is in the Charente Valley, and six crus, or cognac making areas, which were delimited by the government in 1909,are arranged in roughly concentric circles from east to west. They are ranked in quality from one to six.