Brandy (from brandywine, derived from Dutch brandewijn—"burnt wine") is a spirit produced by wine distillation, the wine having first been produced by grape fermentation. It can also be made from fermented fruit (i.e., other than grapes) and from pomace. Brandy generally contains 36%–60% abv (alcohol by volume). Cognac, a type of fine brandy is a strong alcoholic beverage made from cognac spirits produced by means of distillation from new light wines made from white grapes with a subsequent maturation of the cognac spirits in oak casks. The place where cognac is produced is fixed and defined by law: it is a district in the city of Cognac in the south west of France, 500 kilometers off Paris.
