Château de Beaulon Pineau des Charentes 5 Year-old Red

How to describe red Pineau des Charentes? In round terms, imagine a lighter, softer ruby port without the weight or tannins - that's the sort of territory. It's made by adding year-old Cognac to unfermented grape must from Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, then ageing the blend for five years in barrel to bring everything together. With a deep ruby colour, it's full of lovely red fruit aromas, together with cherries and blackcurrants on the palate and a touch of rose-scented florality. The deep, rich flavours linger long on the finish which has a clean, uncloying and fresh sweetness.

A natural aperitif - serve chilled on its own or over ice. It also works well in cocktails, particularly riffs like a Pineau Manhattan where it stands in for vermouth.

In 1965 Christian Thomas acquired the historic buildings of Château de Beaulon and it's from here that the family business is run. Their cognacs are distilled from the traditional grape varieties in four small copper pot stills, which generate a wealth of fruity aroma compounds compared to larger stills and at Beaulon they pride themselves on ageing their cognac well beyond the legal minimum for each level, resulting in a wonderful blend of aromatic spirit and smooth wood. They also produce excellent examples of the local speciality Pineau des Charentes in which year-old cognac is blended with freshly pressed grape juice before being matured for several years to make a mellow, fruity aperitif.