Brandy, much like champagne, owes its many monikers to provenance.  So grapes from Cognac, France, yield silky cognac either VS (very special, aged for two years in French oak barrels) or VSOP (very superior old pale, aged four years ) or XO (aged 10 years). Vines in Armagnac bring forth Armagnac, a rich sipping brandy. Indian brandy uses Indian grape varietals, modelled on French technique, using coal-fired copper pot stills, and may or may not be aged, owing to the temperamental tropical climate. 

With four decades fashioning India’s best-selling and the world’s second most consumed brandy, Mansion House (as per the Millionaires’ Club 2024,  an annual list featuring spirits brands which record annual sales volumes exceeding 1 million nine-litre cases), Tilaknagar Industries ( Maharashtra) launched Monarch Legacy Edition this week in Mumbai.

This premium brandy is a comfortable confluence of French finesse and Indian tradition. The 100% pure grape brandy is a marriage of French brandy from ugni blanc grapes, aged in ex - wine French oak barrels for up to eight years, lending the liquid notes of dried fruits, spice, and a complex fruity character.

Monarch Legacy Edition by Tilaknagar Industries Ltd. | Photo Credit: Ashish Gurbani Studio

The warm climate in the Sahyadri region of Maharashtra, further enhances the extraction of flavours during the maturation of Indian grape spirits, giving Monarch a rich depth of flavour.

“We wanted to change the script around brandy in the Indian market, giving India, a truly premium offering. So from choosing the French grape spirits, the barrels, to the bottle and the launch,  we have been particular at every step,” explains Sanaya Dahanukar, a fifth generation descendant of the Dahanukar family that created Maharashtra Sugar Mills in 1933.

Using molasses, a natural byproduct of the sugar business, it then crafted Mansion House Brandy, in 1983, now the second largest selling brandy across the world (8.9 million cases in 2023 as per a Statista report) with exports to Asia, Europe and parts of Africa.

The idea behind creating Monarch was to capture imagination with innovation — creating a luscious, sipping brandy for aspirational young Indians, carefully side-stepping myths about brandy being merely a warming spirit, often recommended as a remedy for a range of maladies.

“Brandy is India’s second most-consumed spirit category, yet it remains under-recognised in the luxury segment. The launch of Monarch marks a bold step towards elevating Indian brandy to a global benchmark, echoing the remarkable success of Indian whiskies and gins on the world stage,” says Amit Dahanukar, chairman and managing director of Tilaknagar Industries.   

At 42.8 % ABV (alcohol per volume of beverage),  Monarch is heady on the nose-yielding notes of orchard fruit, sweet and velvety on the palate with a lingering spicy finish.

Its rich amber hue,  shines through a carefully crafted decanter style bottle, with cut glass facets, a metallic label with intricate detailing,  a wooden cork crafted in Spain, all housed in an impressive box with a miniature Mughal-style painting of an emperor, with a chalice in hand.

The brandy, while best savoured with a splash of water or on ice, also works in cocktails. Ajay Nayyar, lead spirits and cocktail trainer with Tulleeho, a provider of beverage education, training and consulting services, helped craft a cocktail menu at the launch party, with riffs on the negroni (usually gin-based), martini (vodka-based) and Manhattan (whisky-based) using Monarch, ably assisted by vermouth, orange and gold dusted cherries as a garnish.

Currently available in Maharashtra at ₹6,750 for a 750 ml bottle. The brandy will be available across Goa, Karnataka and Puducherry by early 2025 at varying price points.