End of the meal Drinks – les Boissons

End of the meal The meal traditionally ends with coffee, liqueurs and perhaps petits fours. Coffee is served as: Café Café crème Café au lait which is a breakfast drink

Brandies or liqueurs A brandy or liqueur may accompany the coffee. Brandy is served in a ballon. The most widely known brandy is cognac, named after the Cognac district of France in the Charente, to the north of Bordeaux. There are several firms associated with the distillation of cognac and, like whisky, the name of the firm applies to the cognac. These firms are: Courvoisier Hennessy Martell Rémy Martin

Ballon

Cognac Cognac is colloquially known as ‘une fine’. Certain initials and star classification accompany cognacs: VO – Very old VSO – Very superior old VSOP – Very superior old pale The star indicates the number of years the cognac has spent in the cask: *** 5 years **** 6 years ***** 7 years

Cognac Cognac named after the town of Cognac in France, is a variety of brandy. It is produced in the wine-growing region surrounding the town from which it takes its name, in the French Departements of Charente and Charente-Maritime. For a distilled brandy to bear the name Cognac, an Appellation d'origine contrôlée, its production methods must meet certain legal requirements. In particular, it must be made from specified grapes (Saint-Emilion, is the one most widely used.The brandy must be twice distilled in copper pot stills and aged at least two years in French oak barrels from Limousin or Tronçais. Cognac matures in the same way as whiskies and wine when aged in barrels, and most cognacs are aged considerably longer than the minimum legal requirement.

Brandies There are three other less well-known brandies, all of which are referred to by their individual names, rather than brandy: Armagnac – from Gascogne Calvados – from Normandie Marc – a secondary distillation from several fruits or grapes

Eaux-de-vie – alcools blancs Alcohol can be distilled from various fruits. Collectively these are called ‘eaux-de-vie’, with the fruit named: Eau-de-vie de poire Eau-de-vie de fraise Framboise, mirabelle, pruneau are also used to make eaux-de- vie. Like kirsch, they are frequently used to add distinction to desserts of various sorts, as well as being drunk as liqueur.

Liqueurs Liqueurs derive their characteristic flavours from the essences of fuits, plants and herbs in various combinations. The resulting spirit is distilled to increase its alcoholic content and intensify the predominant flavour. The spirits are finally sweetened. Liqueurs have quite a distinctive fruit taste, for example, banana, peach, plum or pear. They are not eaux-de-vie, which are usually colourless: liqueurs are coloured, generally artificial, at some point in the process of their manufacture. Other liqueurs are known by name. These include:

Liqueurs - suite Chartreuse – herbs Cointreau – orange Grand Marnier – orange Crème de menthe – mint Crème de cassis – blackcurrant Crème de cacao – chocolate Tia Maria - coffee

Chartreuse is a French liqueur made by the Carthusian Monks since the 1740s. It is composed of distilled alcohol aged with 130 herbal extracts. The liqueur is named after the Monks' Grande Chartreuse monastery, located in the Chartreuse Mountains in the general region of Grenoble in France.

Cointreau is a brand of triple sec (an orange-flavoured liqueur) produced in Saint-Barthélemy-d'Anjou, France. It is drunk as an apéritif and digestif, and is a component of several well-known cocktail.

Grand Marnier Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge is an orange-flavored brandy liqueur created in 1880 by Alexandre Marnier-Lapostolle. It is made from a blend of Cognac brandy, distilled essence of bitter orange, and sugar. Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge is 40% alcohol (70 Proof in UK, 80 Proof in US). Aside from Cordon Rouge, the Grand Marnier line includes other liqueurs, most of which can be consumed "neat" as a cordial or a digestif, and can be used in mixed drinks and desserts. In France this kind of use is the most popular, especially with Crêpes Suzette and "crêpes au Grand Marnier". César Ritz reportedly came up with the name "Grand Marnier" for Marnier-Lapostolle, who in return helped him purchase and establish the Hotel Ritz Paris. [1]Hotel Ritz Paris [1]

Crème de cassis Crème de cassis is a sweet, dark red liqueur made from blackcurrants. Several cocktails are made with crème de cassis, including the very popular wine cocktail, kir. It may also be served as an after- dinner liqueur.

Coffee accompaniments Petits fours Truffes au chocolat Petits fours aux amandes Marrons glacés

Eaux minérales Eau de Vichy Perrier - gazeuse Contrexéville Evian Vittel Vitteloise Badoit