Vinjak ( sr-Cyrl, Вињак) is a

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create ...

of brandy produced by the

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

n company

Rubin Rubin is both a surname and a given name. Rubins is a Latvian-language form of the name. As a Jewish name, it derives from the biblical name Reuben. The choice is also influenced by the word ''rubin'' meaning "ruby" is some languages.

. Previously named as

Cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cognac production falls under French appella ...

, it was renamed when stricter laws governing what may be branded Cognac came into force. The drink itself is light brown, and contains 40% alcohol.

, a company created in 1955 and privatised in 2005, has produced the drink since 1957. The spirit is produced by wine distillation, resulting in a 67–70 % alcohol-by-volume (abv) concentration. It is then aged several months to several years, depending on quality range, in oak

cask A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers for liquids, u ...

s of 500 litres each. Before bottling, it is mixed with distilled water, to obtain the 40% abv beverage. Between 4.8 and 5.5 million litres are produced each year. Like French

cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cognac production falls under French appella ...

, Vinjak is labelled with V.S. ("Very Special"), 5 V.S.O.P. ("Very Special Old Pale") or XO ("Extra Old"), depending on how long it was aged. Badel 1862 boasts the first brandy, later named Vinjak, produced in Croatia: Glembay 15 y.o. Distilled in the winery of Benkovac, the distillation process is identical to the process of French

. In 1970 the company introduced Cezar, another Vinjak.

References

External links

Rubin's web page about Vinjak
Brandies Croatian distilled drinks Croatian culture Serbian distilled drinks Serbian culture {{Distilled-beverage-stub