This cognac recipe was obtained from a cognac factory worker. What? Of course I won't tell! The information was obtained in the process of joint drinking of such cognac. It turns out really cognac, like in a store.
A little preface. Once I went to a neighbor to treat him with cognac of my own preparation. We sat, talked, tasted.
And now he says to me: “Of course, you have a good drink, but this is not cognac. Try this one."
He took out a bottle of cognac-colored liquid. He poured - I tried.
And I say: “Of course, why are you pouring store-bought cognac for me?”
No, he says, he did it himself.
Honestly, it was hard to believe - there was a real shop cognac on the table.
Well, share with the recipe - I say.
And here's what he said. His relative works at a cognac factory. It happens that cognac does not have time to stand. And there are many orders. You have to be a little tricky. According to this recipe, cognac is made in a week - three stars, in 2 weeks - 4 stars, and in 3 weeks - five stars. Real from fast cognac, only full-time tasters distinguish.
So what is this recipe?
I'll tell you everything in order. To do this, you need an oak, or rather, an oak bark. Therefore, we head to the forest, grove or some other thicket, where there are oaks. We need the bark of young branches. Do not cut young shoots of oak! Think of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren who might also make cognac.
We cut branches with a diameter of about 5 mm with secateurs. We cut the bark from the branches. Get long ribbons. We cut into pieces of 2-3 cm. It would be good to dry the bark. If you are in a hurry - you can fry in a frying pan like seeds.
If you don’t want to bother with harvesting, you can buy oak bark in ... a pharmacy. The same, but for money :)
And now the most important thing. Pour 1 liter of water into a saucepan. Pour dried oak bark - half a faceted glass. Bring to a boil over high heat and then simmer over low heat until the amount of water is reduced by half. We should get about half a liter of broth.
And now about the original alcohol-containing product. Ideally, it should be alcohol distilled from wine. It has just the right scent to begin with. And after all, cognac is made from wine alcohol. But experience shows that it turns out well from vodka.
So, the resulting broth is poured into 50 degree vodka, which should be from 6 to 9 liters. You can add about 50 grams of melted sugar (slightly darkened). Let stand for a week and you can use it. And then, like real cognacs - the longer it stands, the better.
1 Week - ***
2 weeks - ****
3 weeks - *****
I made the fastest cognac according to this recipe in 40 minutes. Decided to try fishing. They made a decoction, added it to the alcohol, brought it to the desired degrees - and that's it. Everyone liked it.
Don't tell anyone this recipe! At the cognac factory - this is a secret.