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There are currently more than 300 cognac houses in and around Cognac and several -- including Martell, Remy Martin, and Courvoisier -- have visitors' centers and welcome the general public for tours and comparative tastings. (A serious tasting utilizes spittoons because you can only sample so much cognac before you begin to devise imaginative uses for lampshades.)

Particularly interesting is a visit to paradis -- French for "paradise" -- cool, dark cellars in which the barrels of cognac are left to age. Some old barrels are worth a million dollars each -- and some cellars contain as many as 500 barrels. Do the math.

From these barrels, cognac slowly evaporates: "the angels' share," which gives the cellars and warehouses a delightful aroma. The alcohol vapors condense on the walls and attract a microscopic fungus -- quite harmless but it turns the walls a velvety black.

Adding to the eeriness of paradis are the spider webs. They are not only left alone -- they are valued. The spiders eat insects that would otherwise munch on the oak casks. (Memo to film-makers: These cellars would be super for the climax of a thriller. Consider starting with a shoot-out -- eaux-de-vie pouring from half-million dollar barrels after each shot -- leading, of course, to a great, big cognac flambe.)

A young cognac is generally called a V.S. (Very Special). It's perfectly acceptable to use a V.S. in mixed drinks, e.g., cognac and soda, or cognac and tonic with bitters, or a serious cocktail such as a sidecar (cognac, Cointreau, and lemon juice).

The next step up is V.S.P. (Very Superior Pale). X.O. (Extra Old) describes a blend in which even the youngest eaux-de-vie will have been aged for six-and-a-half years. The cognac houses have other names for other blends -- generally, you get what you pay for -- the older and finer, the more costly. (Did you notice that all these designations are in English, not French? That's a legacy of cognac's Anglo-Irish heritage.)

The Nose Knows -- So Do the Other Senses

THE LAST AND PERHAPS MOST IMPORTANT thing you need to know is how to consume cognac as God intended for it to be consumed. "Really, you don't drink cognac," said Bernard E.T. Hine, whose family has been making Hine cognacs not just for several generations but for several centuries. "You appreciate it. And you appreciate it at least as much with the nose as with the palate."

Remy Martin's master taster, Vincent Gere, was even more emphatic: "You must deserve cognac," he told me. "You must seduce it."

As I learned from these and other masters, cognac is meant to engage all five senses. You start by touching the glass, gently warming it with your hand. But never use a candle. That will hasten evaporation and disperse aromas.

Also, the connoisseurs I spoke with tend not to favor big brandy snifters, which put too much liquid in contact with the air too quickly. Bruno Lemoine, Martell's cellar master, recommends smaller glasses, either chimney- or tulip-shaped to allow for slower oxidation and to funnel the aromas.

Hold the glass to the light to see the cognac's color -- from straw to gold to amber depending mainly on the ages of the eaux-de-vie in the blend.

Next, clink your glass with your companion -- listen to the tinkling sound.

Swirl the cognac gently around the glass, allowing it to "breathe." Older cognacs especially need to aerate a bit. Note the cognac's viscosity. It should coat the glass and, soon (be patient), the inside of your mouth.

Bring the glass just close enough that you can begin to detect the faintest aromas or "notes." Bring it closer and "nose" it properly: tilt the glass, insert your proboscis, and sniff -- gently.

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