Armagnac
France's oldest brandy — older than Cognac by a century or more — rustic, soulful and proudly unfashionable, from the rolling hills of Gascony. Ingredients: white grapes — Ugni Blanc, Baco, Folle Blanche, Colombard — from the delimited Armagnac region in southwest France. Method: 1) Distill the wine once, continuously, in the unique Armagnac alembic — a small column still that keeps more of the wine's character than Cognac's double distillation. 2) Age in local black oak; uniquely among great brandies, fine Armagnac is often bottled from a single vintage year. 3) Serve neat after dinner, in a small tulip glass. The experience: deeper and earthier than Cognac — prune, walnut, spice and leather. History: records show distillation in Gascony by the early 1400s; the locals, d'Artagnan's countrymen, have kept it small, family-made and fiercely Gascon ever since.