Brandy / Cognac

Spirits · usually a modifier · in 3 cocktails here

What it is

Distilled wine. Cognac is brandy from the Cognac region — VS is the entry grade and is what most cocktails assume.

Typically about £22 a bottle in the UK.

Grape, dried apricot and raisin, with vanilla and oak from the barrel and a floral top note. Softer and fruitier than whisky.

Base spirit in the older cocktail canon, where its fruit and oak substitute for added sweetness.

Unlocks 3 recipes on Drinki.

Sidecar IBA Sugar rim if you like. Paris, roughly a century ago.
Vieux Carré IBA New Orleans in a glass — rye and cognac sharing the driving.
Brandy Alexander Pudding in a glass, and unapologetic about it.

Nothing substitutes for brandy / cognac convincingly.