The alchemy of brandy
High spirits
South African brandy is world-class, and a visit to Van Ryn's Distillery and Brandy Cellar in Stellenbosch provides the perfect introduction to this noble spirit. By Maryke Visagie.
Once a brandy lover, always a brandy lover. South Africa is a nation of devout brandy drinkers, to the point that we drink almost all the "fire water" we produce. But the most popular partnership is brandewynen-coke, and its association with rowdy braais and raucous student rag parties has probably done more to scare off serious spirit drinkers than entice them. Yet consistent accolades prove that South Africa makes some of the world's best brandies, equal in every way to the finest Cognac from France. Fortunately there are places like Distell's Van Ryn's distillery near Stellenbosch to spread the gospel of this complex, enticing drink, and lift it out of the tall glass with sticky mixer into a balloon glass, accompanied by nothing more than a block of ice or a splash of soda.
The Van Ryn's distillery is a posh place to visit, with falling water, old leather and a gold plaque emblazoned with five stars to lure you into the cool lounge. This Distell brand borrows its name from Jan van Ryn, who started making wine at Vlottenburg as early as 1845. He famously believed that brandy's success lay in its maturation. And he was right.
It's a pretty romantic story, that of brandy - all angels and secrets and hints of vanilla - but it all starts with wine. By definition, brandy is the only alcoholic beverage made from another alcoholic beverage. The Afrikaans word brandewyn is derived from the Dutch brandewijn, or "burnt wine", referring to the distillation process. The Cape's first brandy was distilled on 19 May 1672 by a chef on the Dutch ship De Pijl, just 20 years after Jan van Riebeeck's arrival at the Cape. The Dutch also imported vast amounts of brandy for their sailors to enjoy on their voyages, as it had a longer shelf-life than the wine of yesteryear.
Distillers want a base wine that is generally low in alcohol, about 10 to 12%, and high in fruit acid, with sugar levels of less than four grams per litre and low tannins.This usually means that grapes intended for brandy are picked a little earlier than grapes intended for table wine. Traditionally brandy is made from Chenin Blanc and Colombar, with smaller contributions from Palomino, Sultana and Cinsaut (in theory, any white variety can be used).
The wine is delivered to the distillery, pre-heated to 60ªC and twice-distilled into a pure spirit, which is then matured for a number of years, blended and finally bottled. According to the regulations set out by the SA Wine and Spirits Board, a spirit can only be called brandy if it has been made from grapes, distilled in a copper potstill and matured for a minimum of three years. Another distillation method used in brandy-making is a column still, which creates neutral wine spirit often used to fortify brandies or liqueurs.
Three distillates are drawn during the process, poetically known as the head, heart and tail of the brandy. The head, or first distillation, is collected in the first 15 to 20 minutes and set aside - it can't be used as it is very high in alcohol and unwanted components such as aldehydes. The heart is the sought-after portion as it contains most of the flavours and is also the purest of the three parts. The tail is the last fraction of the distillate and is also kept separate as it contains longer carbon chains and fatty acids (too much tail gives the brandy a soapy taste). Both the head and tail are distilled again, to extract the maximum possible amount of heart from the distillate.
All Van Ryn's brandies are matured in approximately 300-litre French oak barrels. Until the mid-1980s, the staves were imported unassembled and then assembled by hand by a team of coopers, a process that took a laborious seven to eight hours to produce one barrel. This is a dying art, however, as the hundreds of thousands of barrels in use in Distell's maturation cellars call for quicker assembly, and machine technology provides just that.
Nevertheless, there are still honest-togoodness coopers around who are happy to demonstrate their art to distillery visitors. Having first spent three years as an apprentice, learning the tricks of the trade, including how to craft their own tools and tend to them, experienced coopers can bevel a stave without measuring it, patiently chipping away at the sides until it fits snugly inside the metal hoops. It takes between 28 and 32 staves to create a barrel. Patience and accuracy are especially important when fitting the staves into the first hoop and, if care isn't taken, everything can stort in duie, which is where the Afrikaans expression comes from. Traditionally coopers fit spongy strips of bulrushes (palmiet) between the staves, which are then wet on the inside and toasted over flames. The steam bends the wood into shape, hoops are fitted, the barrel is toasted again to the desired roasting level, and finally filled with water, which causes the bulrushes to swell and seal the barrel.
Whether machine- or man-made, the completed barrels are filled with the distillate, stacked in dark, cool maturation cellars, and now the angels must do their job, slowly giving the liquid different shades of amber while the wood permeates it with flavours of nuts, spices, vanilla and fruit.
Of course the angels take their share, with up to 3% a year lost to evaporation through the wood - for Distell this equates to a staggering 300 000 litres of brandy literally disappearing into thin air each year. But it's a necessary tax to pay, as an airtight container would encourage mould and result in a thoroughly spoilt brandy.
In South Africa, the law states that all brandies must be matured for at least three years in barrels no bigger than 340 litres, with a 20 Year Old, for example, blended from components that have been matured for that long. After the required number of years, Distell master blender Johan Venter carefully blends different components to make the 5, 10, 15 and 20 Year Old brandies, trying to maintain consistency over the years. There are also very specific alcohol levels prescribed: distilled water can be used to lower the brandy's alcohol percentage, while neutral wine spirit can be added to hike the levels. Unlike wine, brandy shouldn't change in the bottle over time.
After a tour of the distillery's inner workings, it is time to satisfy your own inner workings with a brandy and chocolate tasting. The 12 Year Old is a bit sharper than the other blends so is served with a milky cappuccino chocolate to cut through the bite. The 15 Year Old is rounder, its flavours best complemented by a block of orange and cinnamon chocolate. And the big kahuna, the dark, spicy 20 Year Old, is accompanied by dark chocolate. Coffee is also served with the tasting.
Van Ryn's Distillery and Brandy Cellar,
Van Ryn Road, Vlottenburg, 7604
Tel 021 881 3875, www.vanryn.co.za
A GUIDE TO THE VAN RYN'S COLLECTION RESERVE
10 YEAR OLD
This brandy is amber in colour with aromas of pears, chocolate and almonds, followed by citrus. Taste tobacco, malt, coffee and chocolate on the palate. Serve neat or with a splash of water.
12 YEAR OLD
This one is a deep golden amber and shows fruit on the nose, such as gooseberry and cherry, with some vanilla. Dried fruit and coffee can be detected on the palate. Best served neat, with ice or a splash of water.
15 YEAR OLD
The 15 Year is a rich, deeper gold with citrus and honey on the nose, combined with cigar box. Chocolate and liqueur come through on the palate, integrating with the oak to create a full finish. Drink neat, with ice or a splash of water.
20 YEAR OLD
This brandy is a deep, opulent gold with fragrances of dried fruit, especially pear, raisins and prune. Spice can be detected on the nose, with nuts coming through on the palate. Drink neat, with ice, or a dash of water.
DID YOU KNOW?
The winelands boast two Brandy Routes, the
Western Cape Brandy Route and the R62 Brandy
Route, taking you to the outskirts of the Cape
where all sorts of brandies can be sampled.
R62 Brandy Route
• Barrydale Cellar, Barrydale
• Boplaas, Calitzdorp
• Grundheim, Oudtshoorn
• Kango Wine Cellar, Oudtshoorn
• Klipdrift, Robertson
• KWV House of Brandy, Worcester
• Mons Ruber, Oudtshoorn
Western Cape Brandy Route
• Avontuur Wine Estate, Somerset West
• Backsberg, Paarl
• De Compagnie, Wellington
• Kaapzicht Estate, Stellenbosch
• Laborie Estate, Paarl
• Louiesenhof, Stellenbosch
• Nederburg, Paarl
• Oude Molen Distillery, Grabouw
• Oude Wellington Estate, Wellington
• Savingnac de Versailles, Wellington
• Tokara, Stellenbosch
• Uitkyk, Stellenbosch
• Upland, Wellington
• Van Ryn's Distillery and Brandy Cellar
Tasting guide for brandy
STEP 1: COLOUR
Tilt the glass away from you against
a white background. A darker
colour suggests age, style and wood
maturation.
STEP 2: DO NOT SWIRL
Pour into a snifter or brandy glass,
allowing aromas to concentrate.
Keep glass stable to avoid losing
volatile and precious flavours. If the
brandy is too cold, it can be gently
warmed by cupping the glass in the
palm of your hand.
STEP 3: NOSE
First sniff the top of the glass to
acclimatise to the alcohol and to pick
up the top notes of fruit and vanilla.
Press the nose deeper into the glass
to pick up the more complex
flavours.
STEP 4: PALATE
Evaluate the smoothness on the palate.
Elegant, older brandies exhibit
sweeter flavours; younger brandies
tend to be harsher and grassier.
STEP 5: OVERALL
The colour, nose and taste of the
brandy allow you to appreciate
its age, wood maturation and full
complexity of flavours.
