Best Affordable Mixing Brandy

[Yojimbo]

To me, fall is Sidecar season. It is also, of course, applejack season, single malt season, genever season, madeira season, and many others: I am not rigidly orthodox in my approach to celebrating calendrical movement, thank you very much.

The thing is, I'm running out, simultaneously, of the bottle of VS cognac I was using for mixing, and I'm so low on the Armagnac I splurged on last year that I'm reduced to sniffing the bottle after dinner. I'm anticipating it will last until 2020 at this rate, at least. Paul Masson VSOP has been recommended on this board as a good bottle to have on hand, but I haven't seen it in my go-to liquor stores lately.

So my question has different levels to it, like a pousse cafe.

What brandy do you choose to use when mixing up sidecars or other brandy-based cocktails at home?

What brandy would you use for mixing when you want to make something really special?

And, just to get new ideas, what brandy-based cocktail do you regularly mix up, other than a sidecar?

Thirstily anticipating the response,

yojimbo

[Chris Amirault]

We have Hennessy VS at work, and I have that or Landy VS at home.

As for cocktails, I could drink Vieux Carrés for a long while. We put this drink of mine on the dessert menu at work, a spicier drink than the VC that's been popular:

Bitter Yak

1 oz rye

1 oz cognac

1/4 oz Fernet Branca

1/2 oz Benedictine

-1/4 oz demerara

Stir; strain over fresh ice; orange twist.

[Alex]

I use De Luze VS, $17.99 here in Michigan. A sidecar is as special as I get for brandy-based cocktails.

[Re Chris's post, gee, I wish I could have Hennessy VS at work. I think the college would frown on that, though. On the opposite (and non-proscribed) end of the central nervous system-affecting spectrum, I've been dropping hints about their buying an espresso machine for my classroom, but no luck so far.]

Edited September 18, 2010 by Alex (log)

[vice]

I've been meaning to pick up a bottle of the Landy. At a slightly higher price point, I really like Dudognon Reserve ($36 from Saratoga Wine Exchange) and Marie Duffau Napoleon armagnac (commonly $30-35).

As for drinks, one gem that gets far too little attention is the Brandy Special, of which Erik (eje) says:

... if you can master this simple formula, (or find a bartender who does,) you may not find much cause to sample other cocktails.

[peterb]

I tend to use Salignac VS for mixing. Typically you can get it for around $20/750ml. It's a very neutral cognac that is well-suited for mixing, you don't feel wasteful in using it, and it's not unpleasant at all.

[Kohai]

I've started playing around with Raynal VSOP, a french product. Doesn't seem terrible and it's hard to beat $13/btl.

[SPS]

This is a bit off topic, but does anyone have a thought or two on how to dispose of a liter of cheap (Deville) brandy? I got suckered into buying the behemoth after an Astor Wines employee told me he mixes with it. To my palette, this is no mixing brandy. Though, I have successfully made brandied cherries and brandied concord grapes with it. Would it be unwise to use it as a bitters/tincture base? And if not, any recipe suggestions?

[Chris Amirault]

Welcome, SPS!

I'm assuming that the DeVille is 80 proof, which means that it's not going to be very good for a bitters base. If I were you, I'd get some bourbon and start aging a big batch of egg nogg.

[Tri2Cook]

I'd get some bourbon and start aging a big batch of egg nogg.

More info please?

[Chris Amirault]

Sorry -- fingers ahead of brain. I meant rum, of course, not bourbon.

I ran a workshop on holiday drinks last year and offered these three versions of Egg Nogg, all of which are good uses for a merely ok brandy.

Single serving:

1 1/2 oz cognac or brandy

1 1/2 oz dark rum

1/2 oz simple syrup

3 oz milk

1 egg

Shake hard without ice to combine well and scramble egg, then add ice & shake again. Strain into glass & dust with nutmeg.

Two servings, blender version (adapted from Jeffrey Morgenthaler):

2 eggs

3 oz (by volume) sugar

1 tsp grated nutmeg

3 oz cognac or brandy

3 oz dark rum

6 oz whole milk

4 oz heavy cream

Beat eggs in blender for 1 minute on medium. Sprinkle in sugar while blending another minute; add rest of ingredients while blending thoroughly. Chill completely & serve with additional nutmeg grated on top.

Twelve servings, going all out (adapted from Dale DeGroff):

12 eggs, separated

2 c caster sugar (100% sugar only -- don’t use corn-starched powdered sugar!!)

2 quarts whole milk

1 quart light cream

12 oz bourbon

12 oz dark rum

one nutmeg berry

Each has little adjustments (you could include madeira, too, for a Baltimore twist), and the last calls for bourbon and not brandy, but there are lots of possibilities here, and all can be aged.

[Tri2Cook]

It's actually the aging part that I was curious about but I very much appreciate the recipes. With that last recipe (the large batch), I can mix it now, fridge it and it will be okay until the holidays?

Edited October 20, 2010 by Tri2Cook (log)

[thirtyoneknots]

Maybe this would best be moved to the eggnog topic (there is one of those, is there not?), but I've got a question as well; is there any good way to consistently keep eggnog from separating? I tend to end up with a lot of foam floating on top after a while. Or is that supposed to happen?

[Chris Amirault]

Mine always separates -- and, yes, you can age it for a long while. Not sure the limit. I like it fresh, with the eggs separated so that you can fold in, and not shake up, the meringue.

[EvergreenDan]

Since this "affordable brandy" thread has drifted into fall-ish cocktails, I made this tonight:

Confusion

1 1/2 oz Apple brandy

1/2 oz Aperol

1/4 oz Triple sec

3/4 oz Lemon juice

1 ds Rhubarb bitters

Shake, strain, rocks, lowball

Confusion -- like a jumbled up fruit bin in your fridge -- apple, orange, lemon, rhubarb. At least it has "brandy" in it -- of sorts.

[Vieux Carré]

I will definitely second the vieux carre! The Sazerac is also a pretty good brandy drink. While the standard today (and my preference) is to use rye, the brandy version is also quite good. I also like the Hoop La! (one part each cognac, Lillet Blanc (Cocci Americano preferred), Cointreau, lemon juice with a twist).

[Will]

I usually just use Hennessy for general purpose stuff - even stuff where I could probably get away with something a little cheaper, like brandied cherries.

For drinking by itself, I've been liking Hine VSOP recently. I've been wanting to try some Cognac that has no added sugar, coloring, etc... any suggestions?