CHENNAI : How Scotch whiskey tipped brandy as the favourite drink of the world is an interesting tale. In the mid-19th century the vineyards in France, then the wine and brandy capital of the world, were annihilated by a pest called phylloxera, leaving the alcohol industry there in dire straits."For two to three years there was no wine production in France and hence no brandy either. The Scots took advantage of this scenario and aggressively traded their whiskey, made of malt and grain. This is when the domination of Scotch whiskey began," said R L Rajah, managing director of Geospace and a brandy connoisseur.This and other fascinating information about the drink was provided at a brandy appreciation event at the GRT Grand on Saturday. Taking the audience through the evolution of brandy he said that while the invention of the drink could be attributed to the French, it was the Dutch who discovered how to preserve the drink, and popularised it."When the Dutch landed in France for the salt trade they stumbled upon the fermented alcohol. The first time they took it back it got spoiled on the long journey. However, they came back and discovered they could preserve it by heating the liquid," said Rajah, adding that the term brandy was derived from the Dutch word brandewijn (burnt wine).While the production of brandy remained on a small scale for a long while, emperors understood the potential for revenue from alcohol and regularised it by introducing taxes.Rajah said the production of brandy involved seven stages from grape crushing to blending. "The longer the alcohol is stored in the casks, the richer the notes," he said, adding that one must first "nose" the drink to take in the flavour and then hold it in the mouth for a while for the taste to register.He said the new product, Hobsons XR, that his company has launched in the Tamil Nadu market was pure imported three-year-old French grape brandy, now available at all TASMAC shops. Geospace, he said, is now in a strategic alliance with French major Bardiney SAS, from whom the drink was sourced.
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