The production of brandy

Brandy

Brandy is a spirit produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35%–60% alcohol by volume and is typically taken as an after-dinner drink...

 on Cyprus

Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...

began in the year 1871 by ETKO (the oldest surviving distiller on the island) following their importation of a pot still

Pot still

A pot still is a type of still used in distilling spirits such as whisky or brandy. Heat is applied directly to the pot containing the wash or wine . This is called a batch distillation ....

 from Cognac

Cognac

Cognac is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.-Geography:Cognac is situated on the river Charente between the towns of Angoulême and Saintes. The majority of the town has been built on the river's left bank, with the smaller right...

 in 1868. Data coming from the English explorer Samuel Baker

Samuel Baker

Sir Samuel White Baker, KCB, FRS, FRGS was a British explorer, officer, naturalist, big game hunter, engineer, writer and abolitionist. He also held the titles of Pasha and Major-General in the Ottoman Empire and Egypt. He served as the Governor-General of the Equatorial Nile Basin between Apr....

 revealed that in 1875 the volume of native brandy production in the Limassol District

Limassol District

Limassol District is one of the six districts of Cyprus. Its main town is Limassol. Part of the British overseas territory of Akrotiri and Dhekelia forms an enclave on the Akrotiri peninsula, under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom....

 alone amounted to 467,711 okes

Oka (measure)

The oka, okka, or oke was an Ottoman measure of mass, equal to 400 dirhems . Its value varied, but it was standardized in the late empire as 1.2829 kilograms...

. Since then it has become popular amongst locals and dozens of companies (mostly in the Limassol district) currently distil it. It differs from other European varieties in that its alcohol concentration is 32%, and most varieties have a distinctly sweet aftertaste. Production is usually by double distillation of xynisteri

Xynisteri

Xynisteri is an indigenous white grape grown on Cyprus. 13% of Cyprus vineyards, or 500 hectares on the south slopes of the Troodos mountain range are planted with this grape variety. It is used in the production of several local wines...

 based white wines with aging in oak barrels. Cypriot brandy forms the base for the Brandy Sour

Brandy Sour (Cyprus)

The Brandy Sour is a mixed alcoholic cocktail that has been cited as the national drink of Cyprus. While other forms of the Brandy Sour cocktail exist, the Cypriot variety is a distinct mixture, which only shares the basic brandy and lemon flavourings with other variants...

 cocktail

Cocktail

A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink that contains two or more ingredients—at least one of the ingredients must be a spirit.Cocktails were originally a mixture of spirits, sugar, water, and bitters. The word has come to mean almost any mixed drink that contains alcohol...

, in addition to locally-produced lemon cordial, that has been cited as the national drink of Cyprus.