L’Encantada are well known for picking and bottling some of the best Armagnacs on the market today.
This particular bottling comes from Domaine le Sablé, an estate that only produced three distillations in 1973, 1974, and finally this vintage, in 1976. The Domaine used solely Baco grapes (at one point the primary grape of Armagnac production), grown at their vineyards in Lagrange in Landes. These casks of Bas-Armagnac were matured in the estate’s cellar for 40 years. This is a single cask release, having been aged in French oak.
This is a floral and refreshing Armagnac, with notes of cedarwood, pressed flowers, roses and lilies, and spicier flavours of cloves, pepper, cinnamon, alongside touches of stone fruit – white peach and apricot particularly.
A delightful, brisk Bas-Armagnac, which L’Encantada suggests would work well as an aperitif, or paired with French cheeses.
I am a huge fan of L'Encantada (I have four other releases) on my bar. Unfortunately, this one is not good. I use it as a baseline now to show friends the difference between good armagnacs and bad armagnacs.