XO wines, such as Remy Martin XO, Martell XO, and Hennessy XO, always make people feel a little mysterious.
To this day, for most Chinese people, XO wine is still the same. They have heard its name and seen its appearance, but they have never tasted it.
Not counting Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, in mainland China, only Cantonese people are popular in drinking XO wine at the banquet table. Remy Martin XO, Martell XO and the like are probably closer to Hong Kong and are more popular. Hong Kong cultural influence.
In other provinces in China, XO wine is not only given as gifts, but also appears more often in nightclub bars.
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO wine, what does this XO mean?
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO, and Hennessy XO are the three giants of XO wine in various bars and towns. In nightclubs, packages often appear in the form of packages, such as 6 bottles of Martell XO, 10 bottles of mineral water, a fruit plate, etc.
In short, the appearance of XO wine is inseparable from the luxurious taste.
Now, let’s unveil it.
1
XO wine is brandy
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO, and Hennessy XO are all a type of brandy, which is what we often One of the foreign wines mentioned.
To be precise, they are all Cognac, because they are all produced in the Cognac region of France.
Maybe you are unfamiliar with Cognac, but Mr. Zheng, let me tell you another place name, and you will probably know it quickly. Bordeaux, Cognac is above (north of) Bordeaux.
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO wine, what does this XO mean?
Remy Martin XO and Martell XO are almost the same as Lafite, just across the river.
Whiskeys such as Red Label and Black Label use wheat as raw material, but brandy is different. It uses grape raw material, which is more like an upgraded version of wine.
The base wine of brandy is mainly brewed from the grape variety Ugni Blanc, which is then double distilled in a copper still, then placed in oak barrels for many years, and then blended.
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO wine, what does this XO mean?
So, in Rémy Martin XO and Martell XO, in these XO wines, you will smell a little bit of fruit, as well as spices and smoke brought by oak barrel aging.
2
What does XO mean?
Drinking red wine at dinner parties, and occasionally talking about brandy, friends will be curious,
" Mr. Zheng, what does XO mean? Remy Martin XO and Martell XO, how come they both have the word XO?”
Remy Martin XO and Martell XO wine, what does this XO mean?
I looked at him and asked, "What do you think?"
My friend shook his head and said, "It shouldn't be a brand, nor a name of origin. Could it be that XO is a brand?" A kind of brewing raw material? Or a brewing method?”
I smiled and said, “Actually, XO is a level and is regulated by law.”
Yes, XO stands for the number of years the brandy has been aged in oak barrels.
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO wine, what does this XO mean?
XO is the abbreviation of "Extra Old", which means that the liquor used in this bottle of XO wine has been in oak barrels for at least ten years. The original rule before 2018 was at least six years.
For example, Rémy Martin XO is a blend of dozens (or hundreds) of brandy liquors, but the aging time of each liquor in oak barrels is at least More than ten years, otherwise it cannot be marked as "XO".
Of course, in actual brewing, the liquor used in these top brandy XO wines will be older, some even sixty or seventy years old. It is really just like what Chinese liquor is promoted, Blended with decades of mellow old wine.
Remy Martin XO, Martell XO wine, what does this XO mean?
A few words here. Many of the so-called 30-year-old and 50-year-old liquors in China are made by adding one or two drops of real 30-year-old or 50-year-old liquor into the liquor. Ten years old vintage liquor.
You say it is not authentic? People put the industry regulations in black and white and say, this is legal, indeed it is legal, industry protectionism!
But brandy, including whiskey, these distilled spirits of the same height, are different. All their liquors must be above this age, which is also stipulated by French law.