Pineau des Charentes

There is also a similar drink called "Troussepinette" that is made in the Vendée, which is often flavoured with pine or fruits such as pear.

Elsewhere in France analogous drinks are made (Macvin in Jura, Floc de Gascogne in the Armagnac area; there is also Pommeau, similarly made by blending apple juice and apple brandy), but these products are much less well known nationally and internationally than Pineau.

According to legend, during the harvest of 1589,[citation needed] a winemaker accidentally added grape must into a barrel that he believed was empty but in fact contained eau de vie.

Normandin-Mercier is a Cognac house known for producing a fine, long-lived example of très vieux pineau.

The finished drink is again between 16% and 22% ABV (usually 17%) and varies between a deep mahogany brown colour and a very dark pink.

Its production is controlled under the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée 'vin de liqueur' classification, though it is not a wine in the ordinary sense.

Very strict rules and formulae for the ratios of brandy and fresh grape juice are followed by each vintner and the process is even more tightly controlled for organic producers.

The act of mixing the eau de vie with the fresh grape juice is referred to as "assemblage", assembly or blending.