A wine producing sub-region within the 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...

 appellation, geographically surrounding the sub-regions of Grande Champagne

Grande Champagne

Grande Champagne is a French district, called a cru, known for its cognac. It produces the finest cognacs in a zone of 34703 hectares, of which 17% is dedicated to production of cognac. At its heart is the town of Segonzac, in the Département of Charente. Grande Champagne is situated entirely in...

, Petite Champagne

Petite Champagne

Petite Champagne is a geographic zone of Cognac production of approximately 66,000 hectares, of which about 15,000 are dedicated to wines destined for cognac. It is situated in the départements of Charente and Charente-Maritime. The principal towns of the region are Barbezieux , Archaic and Jonzac...

 and Borderies, and which falls within both the Charente

Charente

Charente is a department in southwestern France, in the Poitou-Charentes region, named after the Charente River, the most important river in the department, and also the river beside which the department's two largest towns, Angoulême and Cognac, are sited.-History:Charente is one of the original...

 and Charente-Maritime

Charente-Maritime

Charente-Maritime is a department on the west coast of France named after the Charente River.- History :Previously a part of Saintonge, Charente-Inférieure was one of the 83 original departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...

 departments in South-West France, just north of Bordeaux.

Fins Bois is regarded as producing fine (fins) quality eaux-de-vie - though ranked behind those listed above - and is widely used as either a base- or filler- eaux-de-vie in many Cognac blends. While the major brands usually produce blends of several crus

Crus

Crus is the portion of the body starting from the ankle and ending at the knee. It is sometimes known as the gaiter...

, many smaller producers produce single cru blends of various ages. Examples of such producers who release Cru Fins Bois include A. de Fussigny, Chateau de Beaulon and Jean Grosperrin.

Fins Bois eaux-de-vies are characterised by their floral, fruity softness which adds good complexity and body to blends, but without the structure to age well as an exclusive cru blend.