Brandy other beverages to make several popular cocktails; these include the Brandy Sour, the Brandy Alexander, the Sidecar, the Brandy Daisy, and the Brandy Old Fashioned. Brandy is a common deglazing liquid used in making pan sauces for steak and other meat. It is used to create a more intense flavour in some soups, notably onion soup. In English Christmas cooking, brandy is a common flavouring in traditional foods such as Christmas cake, brandy butter, and Christmas pudding. It is also commonly used in drinks such as mulled wine, drunk during the festive season. Brandy is used to flambé dishes such
Armagnac (brandy) distilling spirits, but the overall volume of production is far smaller than Cognac production and therefore is less known outside Europe. In addition, it is for the most part made and sold by small producers, whereas Cognac production is dominated by big-name brands, especially Courvoisier (owned by Beam Suntory), Hennessy (LVMH), Martell (Pernod Ricard), and Rémy Martin (Rémy Cointreau). Armagnac is the oldest brandy distilled in France; and, in the past, it was consumed for its therapeutic benefits. In the 14th century, Prior Vital Du Four, a cardinal, wrote that it had 40 virtues: Between the 15th and 17th centuries,