What do vsop mean

Very Special — Cognacs are those whose youngest eau-de-vie is at least two years old. Cognacs that undergo longer aging are designated X. Extra Old — Cognacs whose youngest eau-de-vie is at least six years old. On April 1, , the X. The aging designation is determined by the youngest eau-de-vie blended in the Cognac, not the oldest. Nearly all Cognac Houses produce a V. P Cognac. Cognac master blenders generally select their finest eaux-de-vie from their better growing crus for their V.

O and had to make your decision based on the price difference. So, what does those letters mean? Firstly, It all has to do with aging — the time a specific spirit matures in a barrel. The letters on the bottle are basically a guide indicating the minimum years the youngest Cognac in the blend actually spent in the barrel.

The aging reads as follows:. Very Special : The youngest blended Cognac or Armagnac must be a minimum 2 years old. Varietal: The Cognac or Armagnac is made with just one grape.

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Cognac Vieux Rectangle. This makes an XXO cognac the oldest official rating a cognac can hold. Of course, there are other commonly used expressions that describe cognacs that have been aged well beyond these 14 years.

However, these are not official categories. So not matter how old a cognac might be, it falls into the XXO category. In fact, before the landmark ruling brought about by Hennessy and other cognac producers, any cognac that had been aged for more than six years was counted as an XO, even if it was more than a century old! P which requires eaux-de-vie to be aged for a minimum of four years. However, a V. P Cognac may be referred to as a Napoleon if it has been aged for more than six years.

Find out more about Napoleon in our sensational interview with him. It is of course recommended to try the favorite of the man himself and taste Courvoisier Napoleon Cognac. Due to the sparsity of the older eaux-de-vie, the amount of bottles produced is limited and obviously higher in price. Officially it is classified in the XO age denomination, but it is used for cognacs that have an average age of 30 years and above.

Just like an XO, the youngest eau-de-vie in an Extra cognac must have been aged for a minimum of 10 years, however an Extra cognac will have been aged for well over the minimum requirement. A Camus Extra Cognac is an excellent choice if you fancy trying this category.

Technically it describes one particular blend or batch. It is especially used in the Champagne classification, not so much in cognac. When it appears on a cognac bottle, it usually means the producer wants to give it a special name instead of using the age categories VSOP and XO.

It might refer to a limited amount of a certain blend. This classification refers to a cognac that has been aged for a minimum of two years. It comes down to personal preference which is better but an XO is usually considered as superior. Types of Cognac.