National Brandied Fruit Day is observed annually on October 20.
Brandied fruit is fresh, sweet fruit that is soaked in brandy and sugar, which is then used as a topping on pies, cake or ice cream. Brandy, which has been around since about the 12th century, is distilled from fermented fruit.
The history of Brandied Fruit Day is, unfortunately, lost to the mists of time. But the tradition of creating this wonderful midwinter treat is not. Brandied fruit wasn’t just a delicious treat for those with the money and resources to make it, but was essentially a high-class method of preservation. Besides being delicious on its own, it also provides a long lasting way of enhancing your Brandy, and preserving fruits that could otherwise be lost for the winter.
- Brandy is distilled from fruits such as grape, apple, blackberry, apricot and so on.
- Based on the region and the fruit, brandy can be divided into several categories: Cognac, Armagnac, American Brandies, and fruit brandies.
- Most brandy is 80 proof (40% alcohol/volume) and has been enjoyed for centuries as a cocktail and cooking ingredient.
- Long before the 16th century, wine was a popular product for trading in European region. In the early 16th century, a Dutchman trader invented the way to ship more wine in the limited cargo space by removing water from the wine. Then he could add the water back to the concentrated wine at the destination port in Holland.
- The word brandy originally comes from the Dutch word brandewijn, which means burnt wine.
- Brandied fruit is used as topping on pies and ice cream.
- Brandy is typically drunk as an after-dinner digestif. It is traditionally served at room temperature (neat) from a snifter, a wine glass or a tulip glass
- Brandy is also a staple for cooking and is great with desserts.
- Most brandy consumed today, even fine brandy, is less than six years old.
- Brandy has many health benefits such as increase the strength of the immune system, reduces respiratory issues, control weight issues, improve your sleep patterns, treatment for pneumonia, boost heart health, treat certain types of cancer and it has ability to slow the signs of aging. Consume it in moderation to reap its health benefits and to avoid the health risks associated with excessive alcohol consumption.
- Some of the earliest thermometers—used in the 1600s—contained brandy instead of mercury. The liquor was eventually replaced with mercury due to the latter material’s wider range of liquid-state temperature.
- The largest collection of brandy is 1057 bottles, achieved by Manuel Bru Vicente (Spain), in Elche, Alicante, Spain, as confirmed on 1 January 2017.
- It takes about 9 gal of wine to make I gal of brandy.
- Italy produces a substantial amount of Grappa, both of the raw, firewater variety and the more elegant, artisanal efforts that are made from one designated grape type and frequently packaged in hand-blown bottles.
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