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Best brandy 2026: 10 expert-rated bottles to buy this Christmas, from £13.99
Our guide to the best brandy under £50
Tested by JoJo AnastasiouFood and Drinks Tester
If you’re a fan of a brandy after the big meal or are looking to gift your host a delicious bottle to serve over the party season, our experts have been busy tasting a wide range of bottles to find the very best brandy for Christmas this year.
The brandy category spans a range of drinks, including Calvados, Cognac and Armagnac and mid-range options can cost anywhere between £40 and £90, with collector Cognacs going up into the thousands.
So, to keep things affordable for this festive guide, the Good Housekeeping Institute experts have focused their search on the best brandy under £50, with bottles starting from just £13.99!
Best brandy 2026
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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.
How we test brandy
The Good Housekeeping Institute tested 20 brandies priced under £50. The panel – made up of WSET-trained wine and spirits experts and consumers – first tasted each one neat and served 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.
Sainsbury's Taste the Difference XO Cognac Fine Champagne
Sainsbury's Taste the Difference XO Cognac Fine Champagne
Score: 84/100
Holding its own against the big brands, Sainsbury’s XO Cognac is aged for a minimum of 10 years, resulting in notes of brown butter, hazelnut, candied almond and vanilla. With a long-lasting toasted finish, it’s a rather nice way of rounding off any meal.
Aldi Specially Selected Chevalier Vs Cognac
Aldi Specially Selected Chevalier Vs Cognac
Score: 83/100
In a close second place, this Cognac is frankly outrageous value. Whether you're using it to flambé desserts or enjoying it in a hot toddy, it displays sweet and spicy notes with caramelised fruit flavours.
Carlos Solera Gran Reserva Brandy de Jerez
Carlos Solera Gran Reserva Brandy de Jerez
Score: 81/100
Proving that Spanish brandy deserves a place on your drinks trolley, 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.
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.
Score: 79/100
From the well-established Spanish wine brand, Torres, comes this top-quality Spanish brandy, aged in American oak. The enticing liquid is bursting with warming spice, alongside notes of caramelised vine fruit, orange zest, almonds and vanilla. A fabulous all-rounder.
Score: 79/100
Rather modestly, this brand has given itself seven stars, but did our panel agree? Well, they may not have scored it quite so highly; however, they found this brandy 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.
Burnt Faith 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 ageing. This British brandy would make a truly stunning gift, for the drinks connoisseur in your life.
Morrisons The Best Best Napoleon Brandy 70cl
Morrisons The Best Best Napoleon Brandy 70cl
Score: 77/100
With rich layers of toffee, honey and coffee, alongside a touch of spice, Morrisons’ own-brand bottle easily holds its own against the big brands. Our panel enjoyed the smooth texture, and warm finish, making it a great buy this Christmas.
Score: 75/100
Like Christmas cake in a glass, this brandy is packed with dried vine fruit, almonds and gentle spice. Our testers described it as an easy-drinking pour, with a super smooth texture and warm finish.
Score: 74/100
Iceland might not be the first place you'd think to buy a bottle of brandy, but this one is a pleasant surprise. Bursting with dried fruit, caramel and vanilla, it tastes remarkably like a mince pie in a glass. Smooth, approachable and well-priced, it's an easy bottle to reach for over the festive season.
These also passed...
- Vecchia Romagna Etichetta Nera Brandy, £29.50 for 70cl, Score: 74/100
- Tesco Finest Xo Brandy, £19.50 for 70cl, Score: 73/100
- Bardinet VSOP Brandy, £16.50 for 70cl, Score: 72/100
- BEST VALUE: Lidl Reverie Finest French Brandy XO, £13.99 for 70cl, Score: 72/100
- Soberano 5 Brandy, £19.50 for 70cl, Score: 71/100
- Waitrose No.1 Cognac VSOP, £32, Score: 71/100
- Courvoisier VSOP Cognac Brandy, £26.20 for 70cl, Score: 70/100
- St Remy Signature French Brandy, £31.35 for 70cl, Score: 70/100
- Ferrand 10 Generations Cognac, £41.95 for 50cl, Score: 70/100
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 the best whisky, older expressions are often considered “better”, but as with anything, it comes down to your personal preference.
The best brandy cocktails
While brandy is delicious served neat at room temperature, or on the rocks (a balloon-shaped glass works best for serving), 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.
Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila. Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine. Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business. You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk
Joanna Anastasiou is our Food and Drinks Tester, and has completed certifications in Sensory Foundation and WSET Wine Level 2 training. Prior to this she studied geography with conservation biology at the University of Exeter and trained at Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland. Through this she has developed a passion for sustainability within the food and agricultural sectors. Joanna also volunteers in kitchens with FoodCycle, as well as on multiple wildlife conservation projects, where she formed a particular love for bees!
