So here are some ways:
Use a special glass (called a "snifter"). This is a rather large (capacious) - "pot-bellied" glass made of thin transparent glass with a short stem.
Pour in a little - a serving of about 50-70 grams.
"Hug" the bottom cup of the snifter with your palm so that the stem of the glass is between the middle and ring fingers. This is necessary in order for the drink to warm up from the warmth of the palm and more actively "give away" its aroma.
First, try to understand and feel all the nuances of aromatics. If you first swallow it, it will be more difficult for you to understand the aroma - due to the fact that a person's nasopharynx connects the receptors of the nose and tongue. And remember - connoisseurs of alcohol (sommeliers, experts) do not say "smell" - they say "listen to the aroma" or "see what is in the aroma".
Try to "tune out" the alcohol burning in the drink and feel all the other notes that are in the cognac. Most often in the aroma and taste you can find tones of chocolate, caramel, dried apricots, wood (oak, oak bark, slightly burnt wood), honey, candied fruits, bread notes (toast), salty, ripe and baked apple, spices (vanilla, cinnamon, etc. etc.), shades of crème brulee, caramelized sugar and many more nuances.
Cognac (and especially premium) is not drunk in one gulp or sips. You sip a small amount - 5-10 ml and, as it were, "smear" it over the tongue and mucous membrane, savoring it.
IN NO EVENT SHOULD YOU COMBINE COGNAC WITH FOOD (as, in principle, and expensive, premium wine) - and in general, do not combine it with food. For by the tastes of food, you kill the taste of the cognac.
Cognac is not drunk "on the run" and "on the move" - ​​it is a drink of contemplation, meditation and relaxation. Excellent - in good weather, late at night outside: in the garden, on the coast, in a hotel, at home (in a cottage, in the country) - by the fireplace in cool weather.
Yes - if you bought an inexpensive mediocre brandy - then of course you can seize it with anything.

But a well-made, aged and premium cognac or Armagnac deserves to be drunk "without anything". Since cognac is one hundred percent digestif (a drink that is drunk a little after a meal, like whiskey, and, in principle, like fortified and dessert wines).

It's great to drink cognac for a leisurely friendly conversation (remember Holmes and Watson. True, they drank Sherry there).

Good luck, be careful and enjoy some great drinks!

Victoria))