Stopping time

For the most part, spirits are quite particular in that they are presented to the consumer as blends of many different aged vintages coming from various harvests.  That’s before we start looking closely at the ever original Armagnac …

VS, VSOP, XO. All of these acronyms are instantly associated with a number of different spirits and indicate an age statement: all are made from a blend of different eaux-de-vie that have been aged for more or less time and the designation indicates the youngest eau-de-vie in the blend.

Thus, an XO Armagnac is made up of a blend of eaux-de-vie where the youngest must have been aged for at least six years in oak barrels.  A blend can therefore also mean that an eau-de-vie that has been ageing for ten years can be combined with younger ones, depending on the cellar masters choice, in order to obtain the most balanced combination for tasting.

Armagnac however, deviates from this rule and also offers Armagnacs from just one single harvest: Vintage Armagnacs.  This practice of recognizing a vintage is a true hallmark of the Gascon eau-de-vie in the world of spirits.

In this way, the charm of one year with its magic, particular identity and character are captured in the bottle as with a great wine, giving the producer the ability of stopping time and recording the year so it may be forever be anchored in memory.

To have a souvenir of one year like this, makes Armagnac the ideal present for an anniversary, as it recalls a precise and memorable time from the past that can be celebrated. Vintage Armagnacs are also particularly interesting for great connoisseurs eager to assess the specific character of one particular year.

Finally, a vintage Armagnac is a little like a time machine that gives us a glimpse of the past…