Domaine de Charron (16 yr) 2001 Bas-Armagnac 750ml

Domaine de Charron began in the 1950s on a small property in Perquie, in the Landes, where the Lartigue family grew Baco grapes and sold most of the harvest to a local cooperative, with only the occasional barrel kept back as eau-de-vie. In 1985, when their father considered pulling out the old vines, brothers Jacques and Claude Lartigue bought the plots themselves and revived the family's Armagnac production, working with a neighboring winemaker known for producing exceptional natural wine from the property's sandy Fauves soil.

This vintage is made entirely from Baco, a grape grown almost exclusively for Armagnac and prized for its resistance to disease as well as the way it develops in barrel over long aging. The 2001 harvest was distilled once, in the traditional column-style Armagnac still heated by wood fire, coming off at a natural strength in the low fifties percent. The spirit then aged sixteen years in oak before bottling without any reduction, so it retains the natural strength it reached in the barrel rather than being cut down with water.

The nose is notably fine, showing crème brûlée and sugarcane juice alongside a touch of sloe berry. The palate is supple and round, with gingerbread, fig, and clove coming forward, finishing long on roasted fruit. It is an unusual, delicate vintage best suited to slow, contemplative sipping.