L'Encantada Tatto Series #2, Beacon of Hope Brandy 750ml

L'Encantada is a small Armagnac bottler based in Vic-Fezensac, in the heart of Gascony, southern France. The house curates single-cask selections from a handful of traditional domaines, working with producers who distill directly in their own fields using a mobile still. Every release is bottled barrel raw, with neither color nor alcohol content adjusted. This particular bottling is part of the Tattoo Series, an ongoing collaboration with importer PM Spirits that pairs each release with original artwork, in this case a label designed by tattoo artist Laura Leonello in 2021 to mark life after the height of the pandemic.

Beacon of Hope blends ten single casks drawn from a small group of traditional domaines, with unblended vintages spanning the 1980s and 1990s and ages ranging from 24 to 36 years. The brandy was originally aged in new Gascon oak, then individually finished in ex-Weller bourbon barrels before blending and bottling, a step that costs it official Armagnac appellation status. It was bottled at a natural cask strength of 46.8 percent, with no additives and no filtration, from a release limited to 1,512 bottles.

The long Gascon aging shows in aromas of dried fruit, vanilla, and toasted oak, while the bourbon cask finish adds a rounder, caramelized sweetness. The palate is rich and warming, carrying dried plum and baking spice through to a long, robust finish built on its high natural proof.