On April 21, 2016, the factory presented its new products of "Noy 30" and "Noy 50" year old Armenian brandy. [3] The ceremony took place in the Multi Grand Hotel at the north of Yerevan, with the presence of president Serzh Sargsyan. [4] During the communist period, Armenian wine grapes were designated primarily for brandy production. Roughly a quarter of all of the brandy produced in the Soviet Union came from Armenia. At the Yalta Conference in 1944, Joseph Stalin was reputed to have plied Winston Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt with copious quantities of an Armenian brandy produced by the Yerevan Brandy company called Dvin. With respect, it is not my respon­si­bil­i­ty to prove Stal­in sent Churchill ‘400 bot­tles ayear.’ That’s up to the writer who made the claim, who nev­er offered proof. Absent evi­dence, one can only apply com­mon sense: Did Stal­in send Churchill “some” cas­es of Armen­ian brandy? Seems rea­son­able (there are 12 bot­tles to acase). Did he send 400 bot­tles ayear? No proof, let alone for howlong. My own con­tri­bu­tion to all this is that the stan­dard brandy Churchill served at Chartwell was Hine (which is quite agree­able).ALon­don wine mer­chant, hired to appraise the cel­lar at Chartwell in the 1950s, pro­nounced it “a sham­bles.” The only con­tents worth men­tion­ing wereacol­lec­tion of vin­tage Hine, and of course Pol Roger Cham­pagne. Trivialities After winning a blind taste test at the 1900 Universal Expo of Paris, Ararat Brandy won the right to legally call their product cognac. They shortly lost this right after WWII, however they still print “cognac” on Armenian and Russian bottles in hopes that nobody notices… lol.

Parfitt, Tom (10 May 2013). "David Cameron says 'real progress' made with Vladimir Putin over Syria". The Telegraph. The brandy is produced using a double distillation process that uses Charentais stills, the same type of still that is used in Cognac production. Maturation occurs in casks made from Caucasian oak, Quercus macranthera. Much as France delights in the uniqueness of Cognac, so Armenians have the same passion for their brandy. Let’s start by looking at the heart of what makes this much-loved Armenian product—the grapes Armenian brandy grapes

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The country currently produces around 20 million liters, about 5.7 million gallons, 90 percent of which is exported. During a 2013 meeting at his personal villa in Sochi, Russian president Vladimir Putin gave British Prime Minister David Cameron a bottle of Armenian brandy as a gift, recalling Stalin's offering to Churchill in 1945. [9] Brands [ edit ] All of the trees used to make the barrels must be from Armenia and must be at least 100 years old (they also are constantly replanting). During the late 19th century a thriving brandy industry developed in Armenia. Taking advantage of the popularity of Cognac in Russia; a consequence of the anti-German, Franco-Russian alliance that preceded World War I, Armenian Brandy was also labeled Kanyak, the Armenian spelling for Cognac. A practice that continues in Armenia, Russia and some of the other former Soviet republics. Yerevan Ararat Brandy Factory, officially known as the Yerevan Ararat Brandy-Wine-Vodka Factory ( Armenian: Երևանի Արարատ կոնյակի-գինու-օղու կոմբինատ), commonly known with its famous brand Noy, is a leading Armenian brandy production company in Yerevan, Armenia, currently owned by Gagik Tsarukyan's Multi Group Concern. It was founded in 1877 during the rule of the Russian Empire. The factory is located on the left bank of Hrazdan river at the centre of Yerevan, occupying the area of the historic Erivan Fortress.

Caucasian oak is believed to impart flavors of dried fruit, dried herbs, as well as vanilla and chocolate notes. All of which are aroma and taste elements closely associated with Armenian brandy. The factory currently produces several types of Armenian famous brandies including "Noy" and "Araspel". "Noy" is a worldwide well known brandy especially in with its 25-year-old "Brandy Noy Tirakal". An undocumented story claims that during the Yalta Conference, Winston Churchill was so impressed with the Armenian brandy Dvin given to him by Joseph Stalin [4] that he asked for several cases of it to be sent to him each year. [5] [6] [7] Reportedly 400 bottles of Dvin were shipped to Churchill annually. [3] [8] This brandy was named in honour of the ancient capital Dvin, and was first produced in 1943. [8] Even with the marketing push and desirability of Armenian brandy, it remains an elusive addition to most people’s liquor collections. The worry of fakes naturally contributes to the wariness of consumers outside of Armenia. However, if you can get your hands on a reliable source, there’s no denying that it’s a taste sensation worth exploring. Our guide taught us the correct way to drink brandy, characteristics to look for and how to pair it. It was very similar to a wine tasting, only with more fire on the tongue.Churchill drankastill white wine on occa­sion. The only such type men­tioned by the apprais­er was acase of’ “per­fect­ly dread­ful” Chardon­nay. Churchill had per­son­al­ly bot­tled this with his long­time friend Hilaire Bel­loc.Hefor­bade throw­ing itout. a b Vladimir Gendlin (2003). "Armenia. The cognac republic". Коммерсантъ. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30 . Retrieved 2007-07-28. I was surprised to find that the English tour was full. Having not seen any other foreigners during our trip to Armenia, I’m pretty sure every tourist in Yerevan was at the factory with us. Now, more than 20 years after the collapse of the Iron Curtain, East European drinks distributor Vinorium has brought 10,000 bottles to London, to be sold from Monday in the city’s specialist wine merchants, such as

Ararat brandy is primarily sold in countries of the former USSR, chief among them Russia, Georgia, Ukraine and Belarus. In the Russian-speaking countries of the former Soviet Union, the Armenian brandy is marketed as cognac (Russian: армянский коньяк, tr. armjanskij konjak). In 1900, the brandy won the Grand-prix award in Paris that allowed Ararat to legally call their brandy "cognac" until it was revoked after WWII. [2] [3] The term "brandy" has never really caught on in the region. [1] In politics [ edit ] A bottle of Ararat brandy The color is a rich mahogany with a reddish cast. On the nose, there are floral aromas followed by dried fruit notes of raisin and fig and a hint of waxiness. I realized two things during our tasting. I’ve never tried brandy before and I’m not a fan. Nevertheless, I still drank both of my glasses in hopes that I would acquire a taste. The factory is mainly famous for its Noy and Kremlin Award Armenian brandy brands. The products are exported to many countries of the CIS and Europe, as well as the United States and Australia.To qualify as a Collection, the brandy must be produced from a Branded eau-de-vie and then further matured in oak barrels for a minimum of another three years. It’s also very common to see Armenian brandy with age statements, such as 5-year, 10-year, 20-year, etc. The legendary Dvin Armenian Brandy has been aged for 30 years

The brandy, which was also a favourite of Agatha Christie and Frank Sinatra, has been made in the Ararat Valley since 1887. The brand is now owned by French drinks giant Pernod Ricard. Ms. Darby’s com­ments were reprint­ed in full. Do we need an affi­davit? (3) Iwrote “seems high­ly doubt­ful,” but if you pre­fer “seems doubt­ful,” Iam hap­py to go along with your impor­tant refine­ment. (4) If there is apoint here, sor­ry but Imissed it. (5) My Dad gave me alet­ter in Santa’s own hand­writ­ing when Iwas five. (“There is no evi­dence for alot of things we do accept”). RML There are several interesting features about Armenian brandy production. First, it only utilizes indigenous grape varieties. Armenia has over 200 indigenous grape varieties, most of which are very old and few of which have been studied by ampelologists. The factory houses a museum that features the history of the factory as well as the notable figures who worked for to the development of the factory, including Tairyan, Shustov, Sedrakyan, Musinyants and Silchenko. [2] Production [ edit ] Noy Classic, 7 year-old Armenian brandy from Yerevan Ararat Brandy Factory Sadly (for Shustov, at least) this privilege was short-lived, and was revoked a few years later. Today they can’t even use the Russian term of Kanyak to label their brandy (as this is a direct translation of the word Cognac). The Armenian government appealed this in 2013, but were turned down—hence today they can only sell it under the name of brandy or Armenian brandy. From Provincial Drinking to Global Recognition

Ararat, The Best Armenian Brandy

Legend has it that Churchill was so smitten with Armenian brandy that he arranged with Stalin for a regular supply to be shipped to him. That story, however, is contested by Churchill biographers. By 1946, Churchill’s comments about the Soviet Union were unlikely to have persuaded Stalin to send him cases of Armenian brandy. Churchill’s usual brandy was Cognac from Hine. Brandy production is still a big business in Armenia. Yerevan, the country’s capital, boasts more brandy distillers per capita than any other city in the world, including Cognac.