Editing Brandy (section)

==Labelling of grades==
Brandy has a traditional age grading system, although its use is unregulated outside of [[Cognac]] and [[Armagnac]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Brandy Bible |url=https://thethreegreyhoundsinn.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Updated-Brandy-Bible-01.19.pdf |access-date=March 3, 2024}}</ref> These indicators can usually be found on the label near the brand name:

* '''V.S.''' ("very special") or ✯✯✯ (three stars) designates a blend in which the youngest brandy has been stored for at least two years in a cask.<ref name="BNIC etiquette">{{Cite web |url=http://www.bnic.fr/cognac/_en/2_cognac/index.aspx?page=etiquette |title=All about Cognac – Reading a label |access-date=9 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161223223212/http://www.bnic.fr/cognac/_en/2_cognac/index.aspx?page=etiquette |archive-date=23 December 2016 |url-status=dead |website=Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac }}</ref>
* '''V.S.O.P.''' ("very superior old pale"), '''Reserve''' or ✯✯✯✯✯ (five stars) designates a blend in which the youngest brandy is stored for at least four years in a cask.<ref name="BNIC etiquette"/>
* '''XO''' ("extra old") or '''Napoléon''' designates a blend in which the youngest brandy is stored for at least six years.<ref name="BNIC etiquette"/>
* '''{{lang|fr|Hors d'âge|italic=no}}''' ('beyond age') is a designation formally equal to XO for Cognac, but for Armagnac it designates brandy that is at least ten years old. In practice, the term is used by producers to market a high-quality product beyond the official age scale.<ref name=":1" />

In the case of [[Brandy de Jerez]], the {{lang|es|Consejo Regulador de la Denominacion Brandy de Jerez}} classifies it according to:<ref>[https://www.brandydejerez.es/sites/default/files/reglamento_de_brandy_de_jerez.pdf Reglamento de Brandy de Jerez] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113134949/https://www.brandydejerez.es/sites/default/files/reglamento_de_brandy_de_jerez.pdf |date=13 November 2023 }} brandydejerez.es</ref>
* Brandy de Jerez Solera: 6 months old.
* Brandy de Jerez Solera Reserva: one year old.
* Brandy de Jerez Solera Gran Reserva: three years old.

[[Russian brandy]] (traditionally called "Cognac" within the country), as well as brandies from many other post-Soviet states, uses the traditional Russian grading system that is similar to the French one, but extends it significantly:<ref>{{cite book|title=Товароведение и экспертиза вкусовых товаров: Учебник для вузов|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xn3u6Xa7u3QC&pg=PA137|publisher=Издательский дом "Питер"|isbn=978-5-94723-971-3|page=137}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cognacmuseum.ru/o-konyake/sroki-vyderzhki-vs-vsop-xo-kv-kvvk-ks-os/ |title=Сроки выдержки VS, VSOP, XO, КВ, КВВК, КС, ОС |publisher=Cognac Museum Moscow |access-date=14 March 2018 |archive-date=14 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180314114840/http://www.cognacmuseum.ru/o-konyake/sroki-vyderzhki-vs-vsop-xo-kv-kvvk-ks-os/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* "Three stars" or ✯✯✯ designates the brandy with the youngest component cask-aged for at least two years, analogous to the French V.S.
* "Four stars" or ✯✯✯✯ is for the blends where the youngest brandy is aged for at least three years.
* "Five stars" means that the youngest brandy in the blend was aged four years, similar to the French V.S.O.P.
* {{lang|ru|КВ}}/KV ("Aged Cognac") is a designation corresponding to "XO" or "Napoléon", meaning that the youngest spirit in the blend is at least six years old.
* {{lang|ru|КВВК}}/KVVK ("Aged Cognac, Superior Quality") designates the eight-year-old blends and tends to be used only for the highest quality vintages.
* {{lang|ru|КС}}/KS ("Old Cognac"): At least ten years of age for the youngest spirit in the blend (similar to the Armagnac's "{{lang|fr|Hors d'âge|italic=no}}").
* {{lang|ru|ОС}}/OS ("Very Old"): Beyond the French system, designating blends older than 20 years.