A family tradition
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Sverre Braastad was born at Gjøvik, Norway in 1879 and arrived in Cognac as a 20-year-old in 1899. The story behind Braastad Cognac starts when Sverre was employed by the reputable cognac house of Alexandre Bisquit. It was not long before Sverre met a girl called Edith Rousseau, granddaughter of Médéric Tiffon, the founder and owner of the cognac house Tiffon. Sverre and Edith wed, and in 1919 they took over the distillery.
Cognac Tiffon gradually developed into one of the largest family-owned producers of cognac. In the 1940s the Braastad family acquired the stately Château de Triac, which included big vineyards in the growing areas of Grand Champagne and Fins Bois. The chateau still remains under family ownership, having accommodated four generations of the family.
The Braastad family still run the business in the traditional way. They grow the grapes and produce wine in order to distil their fine cognacs. These are matured in old oak casks in dark cellars alongside the river Charente, thus guaranteeing cognacs of the highest quality.
Read more about this fascinating family in the Braastad website.
Braastad VS
Braastad VS is blended from specially selected cognacs, mainly from the Fins Bois district. Designated as VS, this implies a storage period of at least 2 years in oak barrels. This cognac, however, has an average storage time of over four years in Limousine oak barrels placed in the Braastad cellars at Jarnac.
Braastad VS has fruity tones combined with a pleasant fresh oak character, and an aftertaste hinting of nuts and vanilla.
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This excellent VSOP is a blend of carefully selected cognacs from the Petite Champagne and Fins Bois growing areas. To attain the quality designation VSOP a cognac must have lain in oak barrels for a minimum of 4 years. Braastad VSOP Réserve has an average storage period of 8 -10 years. Braastad VSOP Réserve received the gold medal in 2003 for the best VSOP cognac at the prestigious International Wine and Spirit Competition in London, in recognition of its superior quality and fine taste.
Braastad VSOP Réserve has an elegant bouquet of floral character and a subtle, well-balanced after-taste with a hint of spices and chocolate.
Braastad XO Fine Champagne
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Braastad XO Fine Champagne is a superb blending of some of the finest cognacs from the Grande and Petite Champagne growth areas, which are widely acclaimed as the prime “crus” in Cognac. A requisite of the quality designation Fine Champagne is that at least 50 per cent of the cognac in the blend must come from Grande Champagne. To be designated XO the youngest element in a cognac must be stored for a minimum of six years in oak barrels. Braastad XO Fine Champagne has an average storage period of 15 – 20 years. Recently, in 2005, the cognac won a silver award in the XO class in the prestigious International Wine and Spirit Competition in London.
Braastad XO has a well-developed, rounded, complex aroma of fresh fruit, with vanilla and violet tones and a touch of tanginess.
Braastad Château de Triac – Rèserve de la Famille
This exquisite cognac comes from the vineyards around the Château de Triac, and has a storage period of around 50 years. On attaining such a maturity, a cognac will develop quite a marked tanginess from the barrel. Cognac from Grande Champagne has this characteristic by virtue of the lengthy storage period developing flowery tones, as evident in this product. Braastad Château de Triac Réserve de la Famille has been stored in ancient barrels of Tronçais oak. Braastad Château de Triac - Réserve de la Famille has a fully developed, complex yet subtle aroma with flowery tones and particular tanginess.