A Very Brief History of Armagnac

The heart of historical Gascony is the Gers department. It produces the oldest brandies in France. Its vineyards, inherited from the Romans, have been in steady production since the middle ages. The Armagnac region was one of the first in France to begin distilling spirits. In the past, Armagnac was consumed for its therapeutic properties. In the 14th century, a cardinal named Prior Vital du Four proclaimed its many virtues.

“…It makes disappear redness and burning of the eyes and stops them from tearing.  It cures hepatitis, gout, cankers and fistulas by ingestion, restores the paralyzed member by massage and heals wounds of the skin by application. Taken in moderation, it enlivens the spirit, recalls the past to memory, renders men joyous, preserves youth and retards senility.  And when retained in the mouth it loosens the tongue and boldens wit…”

View of the Gers Countryside

Researchers from the University of Bordeaux suggested that Armagnac does indeed have health benefits derived from its unique distillation process, rather than from its alcoholic content. They found that moderate consumption can help protect against heart disease and obesity. The southwestern area of France has some of the lowest cardiovascular disease rates in the world.

Armagnac Grape Harvest in Eauze

Armagnac has been carefully cultivated for generations. The production area, some 40,000 acres, is divided into three growing districts, the Bas Armagnac, the Ténerèze, and the Haut-Armagnac. All three areas have carried the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée certification since 1936, which attests to and regulates its quality. In France, under this certification, it is illegal to alter wine by artificial colors and flavorings or chemical preservatives.The grapes also have to be able to survive on their own without added water or the use of chemical pesticides. 

A color Palette of Armagnac

Cognac is made from 80% Ugni Blanc grapes while Armagnac is also made from Ugni Blanc grapes plus 9 other different grape varieties. The diversity of grape varieties authorized by the AOC Armagnac decree is due to the viticultural tradition of the region which also produces tasting wines. The Cognac region only produces wine for its distillation into Cognac.Armagnac and Cognac have two different historical purposes which influence their current reputation. Armagnac is strictly artisanal. Each domain has its own recipe which preserves ancestral knowledge, whereas Cognac was conceived of first as an export to the Netherlands and England, therefore each bottle of Cognac will have exactly the same contents.

Traveling Armagnac Alembic

The alembic (still)  used for the distillation of Cognac is different from the one used for Armagnac. The Cognac or “Charentais” alembic is a basic copper still. The alcohol is distilled twice and the brandy comes out with a higher alcohol content (72°). The Armagnac still is a double-column copper still with trays, for a continuous distillation: the wine is distilled only once and the brandy comes out with a low alcohol content (54°). The plates of the Armagnac still allow the alcohol vapors mingle with the fresh wine and absorb its aromas – This step does not exist in the Cognac still where the alcohol vapors do not meet the fresh wine.The evaporation of alcohol during the aging process allows Armagnac to reach its 40-45° when sold. Cognac is gradually diluted with distilled water to reach its 40-45° for sale.  Older Armagnacs and Cognacs are similarly sold by vintage dates denoting a single year.

The Nectar of the Goddess Demeter

Statue of the Goddess Demeter

On a pleasant Gers afternoon, I visited Domaine de Saoubis with some clients, just down the road from where I live. I walked into the gravel courtyard and rang the bell next to cerulean blue French doors. No one answered. I noticed a small, faded post-it note adhered to a pane of glass, with a telephone number written in black ink. I called the number and a man answered, “J’arrive!  J’arrive!” A few moments later I heard the sound of a tractor and followed it to the vineyard next to the house. From the far end of perfectly delineated rows of Armagnac grapes, an old red tractor driven by Maurice de Mandelaire , son of Raymonde de Mandelaire, matriarch of the Domaine de Saoubis, lumbered towards me. Stepping down from the tractor, he greeted me warmly. We walked back to the tasting room and he opened the locked door and we followed him inside. The space was cool and dark. I told my clients the domaine won its reputation by being the only bio-dynamic, Demeter (goddess of the harvest) certified  Armagnac domaine in the Gers. He explained to us that bio-dynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that emphasizes the holistic development and relationship of soil, plants and animals as a self sustaining system and the harvest is done by the cycles of the moon. Maurice said the distillation happens at the end of October after the first pressing of a variety of grapes, mostly Ugni Blanc, Colombard, Folle Blanche and Baco Blanche. He uses an alembic still made of copper, fired by wood that is constantly fed into the still for 7 days and nights. As soon as the Armagnac is distilled it is aged in 400-liter oak barrels.

Domaine de Saoubis Oak Barrels

During a fascinating conversation which covered American and French politics, we tasted four different Armagnacs, each generously poured into a brandy snifter. Maurice said we should hold the glass in our cupped hands to warm it, releasing the scents of fruits, flowers and spices, the distinctive flavor of each year.  Next we sampled one of their signature products, Dame Douce à la Rose, which tasted like the nectar of the goddess Demeter, herself.  Each bottle is made from 9,000 organically grown rose petals and is the color of finely crushed garnet stones. I could feel the warm glow of the spirits inside and knew I had reached my tasting limit.  After we purchased a few bottles and was ready to leave Maurice said, “You have had a very special, vrai Gascon, experience. Armagnac is among one of the world’s best kept secrets.”

Clients with Maurice at Domaine de Saoubis

Our next stop was Domaine de Barillon. The domaine sits back off the road on the edge of the Gers-Landes department border whose only distinction was a small, faded signpost barely visible behind overgrown rose vines. During the summer months the property is surrounded by vineyards, and fields of sunflowers and corn, corn, but in early spring the property looked forlorn and rather bleak with a blue tarp covering part of the roof that needed repair. We wouldn’t have even known the house was occupied until a protective dog greeted us barking up a storm while I maneuvered down the short driveway to the backyard. A very short, older woman in a faded housecoat and rubber boots came out of the back door. I asked if we might have a tasting and she said she’d go find Laurence who appeared a few minutes later.

Laurence from Domaine de Barillon

Laurence, the daughter of Paul Claverie, principally runs the Domaine de Barillon now. We toured one of two chais (an above-ground wine storeroom), then congregated in a small tasting room, a cobwebbed shanty that housed vintages dating back to the late 1800s distilled by Paul’s grandfather on the same property. The dog joined us for the tasing in what was a genuinely no-frills, delightful experience. Bottles arranged by age lined the back wall of the room or were stacked in a pyramid of wooden crates. We tasted whatever vintages we liked, no matter the age. Quite a few bottles of Armagnac were purchased, then packaged for overseas travel by the completely unaffected Laurence who said,  “You have become part of our long history.  When you drink Armagnac, time stands still.”   

Clients at Domaine de Barillon

We left Domaine de Barillon, enjoying the aftertaste of a truly French country experience that offered us a once-in- a-lifetime chance to taste over a century of distilled and aged spirits.

Sue Aran lives in the Gers department of southwest France. She is the owner of French Country Adventures, which provides private, personally-guided, small-group, slow travel tours into Gascony, the Pays Basque, Provence and beyond. She writes a monthly blog about her life in France and is a contributor to Bonjour Paris and France Today magazines. Slow Travel Tours is an affiliation of small-group tour operators who offer personalized trips in Italy, France, England and other European countries.