16 best brandies for your drinks trolley
The brandy category spans a range of products, including calvados, cognac and armagnac. Here, the Good Housekeeping Institute experts have focused their search on the best brandy under £50, with bottles from just £14!
Best brandy 2025
The best brandy cocktails
While brandy is delicious served neat at room temperature, or on the rocks (a balloon-shaped glass works best), it’s also excellent in cocktails.
Try a classic serve such as the brandy alexander (cognac, crème de cacao, and cream) or the sidecar with Cointreau and lemon. We also like it in this honey and pear brandy old-fashioned, for a fun twist on the whisky-based cocktail.
Looking to replenish your drinks trolley? Read on for more expert-tested reviews:
Best whisky, best tequila, best gin, best flavoured gin, best port, best rum, best spiced rum
What's the difference between brandy and cognac?
As the famous saying goes, not all brandy is cognac, but all cognac is brandy. In other words, cognac is a type of brandy, made specifically in the Cognac region of France. It’s essentially what champagne is to sparkling wine.
What does VSOP mean for brandy?
VSOP stands for “very superior old pale” and means the youngest brandy in the blend has been aged for at least four years.
Is VSOP or XO better?
While a VSOP cognac must be aged for a minimum of four years, an XO or “extra old” cognac requires a minimum of 10 years (up from six years, as of 2018). However, this legally only applies to cognac and armagnac, so you’ll still find the term used widely on other French brandy to demonstrate that it's “extra old”.
Like Scotch whisky, older expressions are often considered “better”, but as with anything, it comes down to your personal preference.
How we test brandy
The Good Housekeeping Institute tested 26 brandies priced under £50. The panel — made up of WSET-trained wine and spirits experts and consumers — tasted each one neat and blind to avoid brand bias, and then with a small amount of water to further assess the flavour.
They were looking for well-balanced examples, from light and fruity through to more mature examples with oak ageing. Those awarded top marks had a smooth mouthfeel, well-integrated alcohol and complex sweetness.
Read on for the best buys for every occasion.
L’Organic 07 Grande Champagne Cognac 7 Year Old
Score: 86/100
Our winning brandy is a rich and warming, certified-organic cognac, bursting with vanilla, cinnamon, dried figs and uplifting orange zest.
On the palate, caramelised apple is complemented by dark chocolate and a little oak on the finish. Our panel couldn't get enough.
£48.95 at thewhiskyexchange.com
10 Year Old
Score: 84/100
This armagnac is one Master of Malt’s best-selling brandies, and we can certainly see why.
Nutmeg, cinnamon and candied orange peel dominate the nose, with caramel following on the palate, alongside smoke and toasted nuts which add a well-balanced savoury element. Rich and earthy, it has a velvety smooth mouthfeel that should appeal to all.
Gran Reserva Brandy de Jerez
Score: 81/100
Proving that Spanish brandy deserves a place on your drinks trolley (and we'd argue, Spanish wine!), this gran reserva is aged in old sherry casks, adding a delicious fruity note to each sip — think spicy orange zest and cooked apple. Brown sugar and treacle add a deep, long-lasting sweetness, making this an excellent digestif.
VS Fine Brandy Cognac
Score: 81/100
As one of the biggest names in brandy, Martell’s cognac offers excellent value. Delicious on its own or in cocktails, you can expect a deceptively light, herbal nose that builds into a bold palate of leather, dried fruit and spice.
Vanilla and cinnamon sugar add balance, but it’s the spiciness that shines through here.
Reserva 5
Score: 79/100
Part of the Gonzalez Byass portfolio (one of Spain's most well-known sherry producers), this brandy is aged for five years in American oak, which is apparent from the first sip. The maturation brings with it coconut, vanilla and a syrupy fruit cake note that will be irresistible to those with a sweet tooth.
7 ******* Brandy
Score: 79/100
Rather modestly, this brand has given itself seven stars, but did our panel agree? They found this rich and powerful, yet easy drinking, with more than a whiff of Werther’s Original about it. With that in mind, we’d serve it alongside a sticky toffee pudding.
Chevalier Vs Cognac
Score: 78/100
An excellent value option for those on a budget, Aldi’s “very special” cognac (meaning it’s been aged for a minimum of two years), is perfect for cocktails. There’s an underlying brown sugar element, with hints of apple, and a little salinity layered on top. Try it with a nutty cheese such as comte.
Finest Xo Brandy
Score: 78/100
According to our panel, Tesco’s brandy – which has been aged for five years – is on a level pegging with Aldi’s cognac (above) and represents the same great value.
On the nose, you’ll find warming gingerbread spice and a touch of raw almond, evoking the flavour of Christmas pudding. The palate offers more sweet caramel, citrus peel and dried apricot, and our panel thought it would work well with a traditional cheeseboard.
Brandy
Score: 77/100
Based in Walthamstow, London, Burnt Faith is Britain’s first ever brandy distillery. Rather excitingly, this is a blend of trebbiano, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and muscat blanc grapes, which are aged in bourbon, cognac, cherry liqueur and fortified wine casks.
The result? A palate filled with notes of caramelised apple pie, hints of orange peel and a delicious spicy depth from the oak aging. This British brandy would make a truly stunning gift, for the drinks connoisseur in your life.
£39.25 at thewhiskyexchange.com
RÊVERIE Brandy X.O.
Score: 77/100
If you’re new to the world of brandy, or just don’t want to invest heavily, Lidl has the answer with this well-priced bottle. The panel praised the approachable combination of caramelised tropical fruit – think ripe banana and juicy pineapple – with a kiss of cooking spices.
It’s only available in-store, but, if you like the sound of it, we’d say it’s well worth seeking out.
£16.99 at Lidl (In-store only)
VS Grand Cru Cognac
Score: 77/100
Holding its own against the big brands, this Sainsbury’s “Grand Cru” cognac is aged for a minimum of two years, resulting in a beautiful drop, offering a blend of burnt caramel, candied orange peel, vanilla and almonds.
Testers described it as having a surprisingly complex, long-lasting finish. Which sounds like a rather nice way of rounding off any meal in our opinion.
The Best Napoleon Brandy
Score: 74/100
Morrisons’ own-brand XO stood out from other brandies on test, due to its distinctively savoury nose. Our experts noted dried leather, fermented apple and a touch of spicy oak. As such, you could even try pairing this one with a grilled steak to bring out the smokiness further.
3 Year Old French Brandy
Score: 72/100
If you’re looking for an easy drinking brandy, look no further! With butterscotch, caramel, candied apples, orange, cinnamon and cloves, this silky-smooth drop goes down all too easily. An excellent value digestif that we wouldn’t hesitate to stock up on.
Riserva Tre Botti
Score: 70/100
Sneaking in at just under £50, this luxury Italian brandy uses a combination of French and Slavonian oak, as well as ex-red wine barrels, each imparting their own unique characteristics to the finished liquid.
And while it’s not the most aromatic, the palate is more pronounced, with a sweet combination of caramel, toasted pecans and lemon curd. Who needs dessert?
VSOP Cognac
Score: 70/100
We couldn’t bring you a brandy round-up without including Courvoisier. The household name is, as you might expect, a safe bet however you wish to serve it.
A beautifully balanced cognac with honeyed sweetness, ginger and creamy coconut — we can understand the recent surge in popularity with a younger audience.
10 Generations Cognac
Score: 70/100
With rich dried fruits (such as figs and dates) and buttery toffee on the nose, it will come as no surprise that this cognac is aged in a combination of French oak and ex-sauternes barrels (a deliciously sweet dessert wine).
However, it’s actually a lot more savoury on the palate than you might expect, with toasted walnuts and almonds, leading to a spicy, leathery finish.
£41.50 at thewhiskyexchange.com
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