Armagnac (brandy)

Last updated March 11, 2019

Armagnac ( /ˈɑːrmənjæk/ ; French: [aʁmaɲak] ) is a distinctive kind of brandy produced in the Armagnac region in Gascony, southwest France. It is distilled from wine usually made from a blend of grapes including Baco 22A, Colombard, Folle blanche and Ugni blanc, traditionally using column stills rather than the pot stills used in the production of cognac. The resulting spirit is then aged in oak barrels before release. Production is overseen by the Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité (INAO) and the Bureau National Interprofessionel de l'Armagnac (BNIA).

Brandy is a spirit produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume and is typically drunk as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with caramel colouring to imitate the effect of aging, and some are produced using a combination of both aging and colouring. Varieties of wine brandy can be found across the winemaking world. Among the most renowned are Cognac and Armagnac from southwestern France.

Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined, and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; by some they are seen to overlap, while others consider Gascony a part of Guyenne. Most definitions put Gascony east and south of Bordeaux.

France, officially the French Republic, is a country whose territory consists of metropolitan France in Western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The metropolitan area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany to the northeast, Switzerland and Italy to the east, and Andorra and Spain to the south. The overseas territories include French Guiana in South America and several islands in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. The country's 18 integral regions span a combined area of 643,801 square kilometres (248,573 sq mi) and a total population of 67.3 million. France, a sovereign state, is a unitary semi-presidential republic with its capital in Paris, the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre. Other major urban areas include Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lille and Nice.

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).

Courvoisier is a brand of cognac owned by Beam Suntory, a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings of Osaka, Japan. The production is based in the town of Jarnac in the Charente region of France.

Beam Suntory, Inc. is a subsidiary of Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd, which itself is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings of Osaka, Japan. Its headquarters are in Chicago, Illinois. It is the third largest producer of distilled beverages worldwide behind Diageo and Pernod Ricard.

Jas Hennessy & Co., or more simply Hennessy, is a Brandy house with headquarters in Cognac, France. Jas Hennessy & Co. sells about 50 million bottles a year worldwide, or more than 40 percent of the world’s cognac, making it the largest cognac producer. It is owned by Moët Hennessy, which is in turn owned by LVMH (66%) and Diageo (34%).

History and cultural uses

Armagnac is the oldest brandy distilled in France; and, in the past, it was consumed for its therapeutic benefits. In the 14th century, Prior Vital Du Four, a cardinal, wrote that it had 40 virtues:^[1]^[2]

Prior, derived from the Latin for "earlier, first", is an ecclesiastical title for a superior, usually lower in rank than an abbot or abbess. Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior.

Cardinal (Catholic Church) senior ecclesiastical official in the Catholic Church

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical leader, considered a Prince of the Church, and usually an ordained bishop of the Catholic Church. The cardinals of the Church are collectively known as the College of Cardinals. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and making themselves available individually or in groups to the Pope as requested. Most have additional duties, such as leading a diocese or archdiocese or managing a department of the Roman Curia. A cardinal's primary duty is electing the Pope when the see becomes vacant. During the sede vacante, the day-to-day governance of the Holy See is in the hands of the College of Cardinals. The right to enter the conclave of cardinals where the pope is elected is limited to those who have not reached the age of 80 years by the day the vacancy occurs.

It makes disappear redness and burning of the eyes, and stops them from tearing; it cures hepatitis, sober consumption adhering. It cures gout, cankers, and fistula by ingestion; restores the paralysed member by massage; and heals wounds of the skin by application. It enlivens the spirit, partaken in moderation, recalls the past to memory, renders men joyous, preserves youth and retards senility. And when retained in the mouth, it loosens the tongue and emboldens the wit, if someone timid from time to time himself permits.^[3]

Between the 15th and 17th centuries, Armagnac was traded on the markets of Saint-Sever, Mont-de-Marsan, and Aire-sur-l'Adour. Subsequently, Dutch merchants began promoting the trade more widely.

Saint-Sever is a commune in the Landes department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.

Mont-de-Marsan is a commune and capital of the Landes department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.

Aire-sur-l'Adour is a commune in the Landes department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.

The traditional French gourmet dish ortolan has traditionally been prepared by force-feeding an ortolan bunting before drowning it in Armagnac and roasting it. The dish is now legally prohibited due to laws protecting the bird.^[4]^[5]

The ortolan or ortolan bunting, is a bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a passerine family now separated by most modern scholars from the finches, Fringillidae. The genus name Emberiza is from Old High German Embritz, a bunting. The specific hortulana is from the Italian name for this bird, ortolana. The English ortolan is derived from Middle French hortolan, "gardener".

Geography

The Armagnac region lies between the Adour and Garonne rivers in the foothills of the Pyrenees. The region was granted AOC status in 1936. The official production area is divided into three districts that lie in the departements of Gers, Landes, and Lot-et-Garonne. The region contains 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of grape-producing vines. The Fallières Decree of 25 May 1909 describes the three districts:

Each of these areas is controlled by separate AOC regulations. The newer appellation Blanche d'Armagnac was established to allow the production and export of clear, white brandies that are unaged.^[6]

Production

Armagnac is traditionally distilled once, resulting in 52% of alcohol. This results in a more fragrant and flavorful spirit than Cognac, where double distillation takes place. Long ageing in oak barrels softens the taste and causes the development of more complex flavours and a brown colour. Ageing in the barrel removes a part of the alcohol and water by evaporation (known as part des anges—"angels' tribute" or "angels' share") and allows more complex aromatic compounds to appear by oxidation, which further modifies the flavour. Since alcohol evaporates faster than water, the alcohol degree is naturally reduced by an average of 0.4% per year depending on the characteristics of the cellars (average temperature and humidity). When the Armagnac is considered as matured, it is transferred to large glass bottles (called "Dame Jeanne") for storage. The main difference between Armagnac and other spirits is, that due to its relatively low alcoholic content, it is generally not diluted with water.

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 two years of ageing in wood. For VSOP, the ageing is at least three years, and for XO, at least ten. Hors d'âge means the youngest component in the blend is at least ten years old. 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.

Grapes

Ten different varieties of Armagnac grapes are authorised for use in the production of Armagnac. Of these, four are most common:

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References

↑ "France vaunts '40 virtues' of Armagnac". Independent Print Ltd. The Independent. 2010-02-07. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
↑ "Armagnac attack". Fairfax Digital. The Age. 2010-03-09. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
↑ "Brandy can ward off heart attacks". Associated Newspapers Ltd. Daily Mail (Mail Online). 2007-05-11. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
↑ Wallop, Harry (2014-09-18). "Why French chefs want us to eat this bird – head, bones, beak and all". Telegraph Media Group Limited. The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
↑ Love, Brian (2014-09-06). "French chefs seek to put banned songbird back on menu". Thomson Reuters. Reuters. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-02-28. Retrieved 2008-09-23.

External links

Cognac and Armagnac—The official website of France (in English)

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[1] "France vaunts '40 virtues' of Armagnac". Independent Print Ltd. The Independent. 2010-02-07. Retrieved 4 December 2014.

[2] "Armagnac attack". Fairfax Digital. The Age. 2010-03-09. Retrieved 4 December 2014.

[3] "Brandy can ward off heart attacks". Associated Newspapers Ltd. Daily Mail (Mail Online). 2007-05-11. Retrieved 4 December 2014.

[4] Wallop, Harry (2014-09-18). "Why French chefs want us to eat this bird – head, bones, beak and all". Telegraph Media Group Limited. The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 December 2014.

[5] Love, Brian (2014-09-06). "French chefs seek to put banned songbird back on menu". Thomson Reuters. Reuters. Retrieved 4 December 2014.

[6] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-02-28. Retrieved 2008-09-23.