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Brenne is not just about great whiskey; it's also about social responsibility. The distillery commits to sustainable farming practices and eco-friendly production processes, reinforcing its dedication to producing high-quality, authentic French whiskey with respect for the environment. Their seed-to-spirit philosophy and terroir-driven profiles give an exciting and unique perspective on single malts. Both whiskey beginners and connoisseurs will appreciate the commitment to quality, innovation, and sustainability. A Short History of French Whiskey Production
No longer heading the Brenne brand, Parc is a consultant for entrepreneurs at various stages of business development, with future plans for whiskey brands. Keep your eye on her journey! Heaven Hill and Brenne French Whiskey Caramelized apple tart: The fruity and slightly floral notes of Brenne's single malts pair beautifully with the sweetness and tartness of a caramelized apple tart. The combination of flavors creates a delightful contrast and balance, making it a perfect dessert pairing. We aren’t trying to replicate a Scotch whisky, but rather offer something completely new to the world of single malt,” she said. “Our barrels are new French Limousin oak and also Cognac barrels, so you get this whisky that has an incredible bouquet of fruit, floral, and creamy notes. Most interestingly though, Brenne single malt is twice-distilled in an alembic Charente still, an interesting distilling apparatus that’s designed to process fermented grape juice instead a barley mash. French Limousin oak and ex-Cognac casks are then used for maturation. Parc: Oh, it was pretty simple, actually. I just opened up a bottle and said, “Here, smell this.” Or poured a glass and said, “Here, taste this.” Because this intentionally doesn’t taste like any single malt out there, and it’s not just different for the sake of being different, but the taste is so unbelievably smooth and approachable and friendly and unique. It’s like in a blind taste test, I will always be able to find the brand.Innovation played a vital role in French whiskey production, especially in the maturation process. Whiskeys were aged in French oak barrels previously used for wine, cognac, or other spirits, infusing diverse flavors into the final product. This approach gave French whiskey a distinctive terroir-driven character that set them apart. Within a short period, more than 50 distilleries have emerged across France, each creating its own expressions that respect local traditions while pushing the boundaries of whiskey-making.
To my surprise, the answer was yes. Where Brenne Estate Whisky is inelegant and insipid, Brenne 10 is leaner and more focused, exactly what this whisky needs. This bottling consists of a blend of four casks “hand-selected for their distinctive complexity and balance by the brand’s founder, Allison Patel.” Quantities for this release are thus limited at 290 cases for 2015, but Brenne hopes to make Brenne 10 an annual tradition. Tasting Notes: Brenne 10 is the older, and higher proofed, sibling of the original Brenne which has been a divisive dram in the whisky world. Some people absolutely love it while others, like myself, can’t stand it and I think a lot of it comes down to if you’re a sweet person or not. Me, I’m salty-savory which is why I like big oaky bourbons, peated islay whisky and darker unpeated malts like Criagellachie. After enough trial and error, this synergistic relationship and their combined efforts resulted in a unique single malt, and Patel was ready to launch Brenne. It is slightly more comparable to rye or bourbon because it has those fruity baking spices going on, but it doesn't have the same spicy punch that so many of those often have. Parc: So I say, if you can imagine like an X and Y axis, right? On your X axis, it’s the flavor spectrum. So all the way over on the left is going to be your smoky, peaty, iodine, bandaid notes. And all the way over on the right on that flavor spectrum is your fruit notes, your really intense fruit notes. On the Y axis, the vertical axis, you have levels of intensity. So if you’re just focusing on whisky, if you say something like the Laphroaig or Ardbeg, you’re going to go all the way over to the left and all the way up to the top of the intensityAP: Heather, you have worked in many areas of whisky to now run your own brand. What is something you want to see in the future?
Its light, candy-like flavor might make Brenne a good bridge spirit for drinkers moving into whisky, but those qualities made it a challenge for my palate. While I credit Brenne for producing such a unique style of malt, ultimately it’s not for me. But, if you’ve got a sweet tooth, it might be for you. Parc: In the U.S., which is where you and I are currently based, our adoption to Japanese whisky really started in 2012. But if you look at the first countries outside of Japan that were getting excited about Japanese whisky, that was actually France, and they started writing about it and buying it up in the early 2000s. I’ve just always been a Francophile, and I was paying attention to that. When reviewing whiskey, consider several key factors. The appearance looks at the color and clarity of the whiskey. The nose evaluates the aroma, identifying any notes of fruits, spices, or other scents. The taste examines the flavor profile, including the balance of sweetness and bitterness. The mouthfeel considers the texture and viscosity of the whiskey on the palate. The finish refers to the lingering taste and sensations after swallowing. Brenne Estate Cask Single Malt Very hard to judge because there’s not much to compare it to. It doesn’t fit into any flavour camp and rather is an entire category on its own. Please do try it when you get the chance, but don’t expect anything that resembles whisky as you know it.Heather Greene: Oh my god, Googling under the table. Yes, that still happens. I agree with Nicola, I always felt like I had to hit the ball way harder than anyone else. In 2012, right around the time I met you and Brenne, Allison, I was actually turned down for every single ambassador job at whiskey companies when I was looking. I was told by some insiders that having a woman represent a brand was a “nonstarter.” They were terrified of feminizing whisk(e)y. I am super excited about the progress; I don’t think that happens anymore – at least I hope. Patel has been a lot of things. She’s a ballerina with a 14 year tenure. She’s a marketing guru who boosted the sales of a luxury company thrice-fold during the 2008 recession. But most importantly, she’s a whisky fanatic dedicated to true terroir. When she first decided to take the plunge into starting her own company, she wasn’t expecting to build her own brand. Instead, she wanted to found an import company, showcasing whiskies from countries not traditionally known for whisky production.
More sugary sweet tropical fruit fades out painfully slow with some sour, ashy, funky and woody notes. Made in the French Cognac region, Brenne is not your everyday single malt. Most everything about it is local. The two types of heirloom barley are grown in the fields surrounding the distillery. A proprietary yeast strain is applied for fermentation. In their own words, here shares Georgie Bell (Bacardi, UK), Tracie Franklin (NJAI Leadership Program, USA, DC/TN), Heather Greene (Milam & Greene, USA, TX), and Nicola Riske (Edrington, Spain): I always thought that was such a cool innovation, people using what was around them, which resulted in radically different whiskies. I just asked, is there a way to innovate via the usage of terroir? Single malts haven’t done that recently, and I felt that it was time.” The quality and popularity of French whiskey have gained international recognition , with several distilleries winning awards for their craftsmanship. Despite being a newcomer in the whiskey world, France's whiskey industry is making a significant impact, promising exciting growth in the future. Brenne Founder: Alison Parc
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To be fair, this isn’t the whiskey’s playground. The purpose behind the Mule is to try and overwhelm the whiskey with another bold and contrasting flavor, so you have to use a bold whiskey (think Rye), or you just have a lot of ginger flavor. In this case, we have a light and delicate whiskey that is just completely overwhelmed by the ginger flavor. And literally my second whisky of my life was a Yamazaki 18, and it completely changed my perception of what whiskey could be. Dewar’s, which was a blended scotch, as I know now, and this very high-end Japanese whisky. But I didn’t know if they were different because of terroir, right? Was there something that the Japanese were doing that was different from what the Scotch were doing in that? Were they using local and indigenous ingredients to show a sense of place in the taste? So originally I thought, “That’s really cool. I should bring some of these Japanese whiskies over into the U.S.” Cognac is a variety of brandy named after the town of Cognac, France. It's produced using specific types of grapes, primarily Ugni Blanc. The production process involves double distillation in copper pot stills and aging in Limousin or Tronçais oak casks for at least two years. Cognac's flavor profile typically includes notes of fruit, flowers, and spices.
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