Definition

1. Noun:
   • A strong alcoholic spirit: "brandy" is a type of distilled spirit made from wine or fermented fruit juice. It is typically aged in wooden casks.

Usage

• General Use: The word "brandy" is used as a countable noun (e.g., , ) to refer to a type of drink or a serving of it. It is also used as an uncountable noun to refer to the substance in general.
• Context: It is commonly consumed as an after-dinner drink (a digestif) and is often served in a snifter glass.

Examples

• Noun:
  • He poured a glass of fine brandy.
  • After dinner, they enjoyed a brandy by the fireplace.
  • This brandy is distilled from grapes grown in the Cognac region.

Advanced Usage

• "Brandy butter": A rich, sweet sauce made from brandy, butter, and sugar, traditionally served with Christmas pudding.
  • The Christmas pudding was served with a dollop of brandy butter.
• "Brandy snap": A crisp, sweet wafer often flavored with ginger and sometimes filled with cream.
  • She served brandy snaps with afternoon tea.

Variants and Related Words

• Brandied (adj): Describing food that has been soaked or cooked in brandy.
  • The cake was filled with brandied cherries.
• Cognac (n): A specific, high-quality type of brandy produced in the Cognac region of France.
• Armagnac (n): A type of brandy produced in the Armagnac region of France.

Synonyms

• Spirit: A strong distilled alcoholic drink.
• Eau-de-vie: A French term meaning "water of life," often used for clear, colorless fruit brandies.

Related Phrases

• "Brandy blossom" (or "brandy nose"): An informal, dated term for rhinophyma, a skin condition often (though inaccurately) associated with heavy alcohol consumption.
  • The old sailor was said to have a brandy blossom.

Idioms

• "As smooth as brandy": Used to describe something, often a voice or manner, that is very smooth and rich.
  • The radio host's voice was as smooth as brandy.

Noun

1. distilled from wine or fermented fruit juice