Brandy - Terminology and Legal Definitions

Terminology and Legal Definitions

According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica and general colloquial usage of the term, brandy may also be made from pomace and from fermented fruit other than grapes.

If a beverage comes from a particular fruit (or multiple fruits) other than exclusively grapes, or from the must of such fruit, it may be referred to as a "fruit brandy" or "fruit spirit" or using the name of a fruit, such as "peach brandy", rather than just generically as "brandy". If pomace is the raw material, the beverage may be called "pomace brandy", "marc brandy", "grape marc", "fruit marc spirit", or "grape marc spirit". Grape pomace brandy may be designated as "grappa" or "grappa brandy". Apple brandy may be referred to as "applejack". There is also a product called "grain brandy" that is made from grain spirits.

Within particular jurisdictions, there are specific regulatory requirements regarding the labelling of products identified as brandy. For example:

• In the European Union, there are regulations that require products labelled as brandy (except "grain brandy") to be produced exclusively from the distillation or redistillation of (grape-based) wine (or "wine fortified for distillation"), and a minimum of six months of aging in oak is required. Alcoholic beverages imported to the EU from the United States or other non-EC states can be sold within the European Union using labels that refer to them as "fruit brandy" or "pomace brandy", but such a label cannot be used in the EU for products produced in an EC member state.

• In the United States, brandy that has been produced in some way other than using grape wine must be labelled with a clarifying description of the type of brandy production (e.g., "peach brandy", "fruit brandy", "dried fruit brandy", or "pomace brandy"), and brandy that has not been aged in oak for at least two years must be labelled as "immature".

• In Canada, the regulations regarding naming conventions for brandy are basically similar to those the United States (provisions B.02.050–061), the minimum specified aging period is six months in wood (although not necessarily oak, provision B.02.061.2), and caramel, fruit, other botantical substances, flavourings, and flavouring preparations may also be included in a product called brandy (provisions B.02.050–059).

Within the European Union, the German term Weinbrand is legally equivalent to the English term "brandy", but outside the German-speaking countries it is particularly used to designate brandy from Austria and Germany. In Poland, brandy is sometimes called winiak, from wino (wine).