Domaine d’Esperance, 2003 Folle Blanche, Bas-Armagnac, 50% ABV, 750 ml is a vintage, specific cask selection produced entirely from Folle blanche grapes. The company has been run by members of the Montesquiou family since 1990.

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Each of these areas is controlled by separate AOC regulations. The newest appellation Blanche d'Armagnac ('white Armagnac') was established to allow the production and export of clear, unaged brandies. [6] Production [ edit ] Column still, domaine d'Ognoas, Arthez-d'Armagnac, Landes, 1936 Column still, domaine d'Ognoas, Arthez-d'Armagnac, Landes, 1804 Rich fruit cake, plums, and spice (think nutmeg, cinnamon) on the opening. Succulent dried fruits mid-palate with subtle yet lingering ginger and oak on the finish. Best ServedArmagnac is rich in flavour and, depending on age, will usually have notes of caramel, cocoa, prunes, nuts, vanilla, oak and cinnamon. The opening is delightfully rich and smooth, with a subtle bite of spice on the finish. Understanding Armagnac Age Lettering

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Armagnac vines grow in fine quartz sands, continental and riverbed sediments and siliceous clay. This terroir is divided into 3 crus: The base wine of Armagnac is typically distilled on the fine lees. This is a common practice in Cognac; it’s used by major producers like Remy, Hine, Camus and Frapin. Armin and Rémy remain strongly attached to the production of Armagnac which covers about 10% of the family-owned vineyards. This way, the estate’s hundred-year-old cellars quietly safeguard about 5,000 barrels of Armagnac which is slowly ageing. The resulting brandy has a rustic, assertive character and aroma that requires additional cask aging to mellow it out. The best Armagnacs are aged in casks made from the local Monlezun oak. In recent years Limousin and Troncais oak casks have been added to the mix of casks as suitable Monlezun oak becomes harder to find.Unlike Armagnac, Cognac historically developed focusing on export to the Netherlands and to England. Cognac was created by wine producers who wished to export their low-alcohol white wine to England and Holland but decided to distill it so it would better withstand the journey. This year, the Grassa family is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its partnership with Waitrose with its Bas-Armagnac XO. The nose is a pleasant bouquet of pressed dried fruits, delightful vanilla, and spicy cinnamon. On The Palate Baron De Lustrac X.O. 25-Year-Old Bas Armagnac is made predominantly with Folle Blanche grapes and blended with other Armagnac from the surrounding regions. The spirit is then left to age in new oak casks for 25 years and bottled at cask strength. On The Nose Distilled in 2003 and bottled in 2016 as a 13 YO, the Armagnac offers up powerful floral and fruity notes, along with honey, almond, hazelnut and anise/licorice. There are additional spice notes of cinnamon, cardamom, pepper and some fresh mint.

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The Armagnac is first aged in new oak barrels for the first half of the maturation process and then aged in older, more mature casks in this double maturation process. The dark amber Armagnac is then ready for bottling. On The Nose Armagnac is sold under several classifications, mostly referring to the age of the constituent brandies. Armagnac is allowed to be sold under vintages. When Armagnacs of different ages have been blended, the age on the bottle refers to the youngest component. A three-star, or VS, Armagnac is a mix of several Armagnacs that have seen at least one year of ageing in wood. For VSOP the ageing is at least four years, and for XO and Hors d'âge ten years. Older and better Armagnacs are often sold as vintages, with the bottles containing Armagnac from a single year, the year being noted on the bottle, aged for a minimum of 10 years. Vintages flavour and appearance change depending on factors including the grape, ageing time, barrel used for ageing, grape variety, weather that year, storage location and more. [7] The wines are distilled in a traditional armagnac alambic fired with wood from recycled vine stakes. The 100-year-old cellars quietly safeguard the barrels during maturation. Each grape variety and each vintage are distilled and aged separately for the first years. After several years of ageing in fine grain oak barrels from the most renowned French forests, these eaux-de-vie become Bas-Armagnacs of great finesse and rare elegance. Baron de Lustracis a small spirit producer with estates in the Tenereze and Bas-Armagnac regions. The Distillery only produces a single varietal offering of its unique Armagnac or on a bottled-on-demand arrangement. The Cognac and Armagnac terroirs, both in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, are located some 300 km from each other; which means differences in the soil.In 1946, Pierre Grassa married Jean-Pierre’s daughter, Hélène Artaud. With heads full of ideas, they took over Domaine Tariquet (with 10 hectares of vines in production) and set about developing the property by buying more land to grow corn. With their four children, Maïté, Christiane, Françoise and Yves, the family was virtually self-sufficient. Unaged Armagnac, Blanche d’Armagnac, a new category legalized in 2007, is very aromatic and fruity and is very similar to Pisco. International Spirits Challenge 2020, UK: Domaine Tariquet has been designated Armagnac Producer of the year 2020. FAMILY HISTORY

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Marie Duffau, Napoleon, Bas Armagnac, 40% ABV, 750 ml offers up notes of dried fruit, especially prune, dark chocolate and brown sugar. This is a very floral Armagnac, with a touch of creamy sweetness that is accompanied by notes of vanilla, well-seasoned wood, some pound cake, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and a touch of pepper. The existence of the port of La Rochelle and the 1860 Trade Agreement between France and England under the authority of Napoleon III enabled Cognac to grow exponentially abroad, which continues to this day. 98% of the production is exported. Cognac is mainly sold by __four major, world-known Cognac trading houses: Hennessy, Courvoisier, Remy-Martin and Martell. Château de Gaube, Bas Armagnac Darroze, 1972, 43.5% ABV, 750 ml. Francois Darroze is a negociant that is one of the largest bottlers of Armagnac and specializes in vintage expressions. The 1972 Gaube was bottled in 2011 as a 39 YO expression. All the Château’s Armagnacs are produced entirely from the Baco grape. The Château is located in the Perquie area of Landes in Bas-Armagnac.Armagnac was one of the first areas in France to begin distilling spirits, but the overall volume of production is far smaller than cognac production and therefore is less known outside Europe. In addition, it is for the most part made and sold by small producers, whereas cognac production is dominated by big-name brands, especially Courvoisier (owned by Beam Suntory), Hennessy ( LVMH), Martell ( Pernod Ricard), and Rémy Martin ( Rémy Cointreau). Baco 22A, also known as Baco blanc, is one of just a handful of hybrid grape varieties whose cultivation to produce spirts is still allowed under EU regulations. During the 20th century, Baco was the principal grape variety used to make Armagnac. Armin said: “Amplitude is a surprising, unusual dry white wine, with beautiful tension and ample on the palate. It’s produced from Gros Manseng, an indigenous variety. Entracte is a blend of Chenin and Chardonnay for which the second fermentation takes place in a closed vat. We wanted to produce a sparkling white wine which would offer light, refreshing and very delicate bubbles. The alcohol level also had to be low; the 2018 vintage is only 10.5%, like Domaine Tariquet Classic”.