Another little bag of Armagnacs


August 16, 2026

A word of caution
Let me please remind you that my humble assessments of any spirits are done from the point of view of a malt whisky enthusiast who, what's more, is aboslutely not an expert in rum, brandy, tequila, vodka, gin or any other spirits. Thank you – and peace!

Another little bag of Armagnacs

After last week’s cognacs, here come the armagnacs again on WF. And this time, I promise we’re not going to do it ‘vertically’…

Domaine d’Aurensan ‘Les 10’ (43.9%, OB, Ténarèze, 2026)

The ten grape varieties authorised in Armagnac assembled into a single bottling, that really is a first and rather reminds us of what a few rare Champagne houses are doing, Drappier for example. But we’re not here to talk about Champagne… To be complete, those varieties are the very rare (in Armagnac) Plant de graisse, Meslier St François, Mauzac blanc, Mauzac rosé, Clairette de Gascogne, Jurançon blanc, and of course Ugni blanc, Colombard, Baco and Folle blanche. That does make ten… Colour: amber. Nose: the bitters and marcs are dominating proceedings, amaros, marc de Bourgogne, small berries, fruit skins, zests, herbs and flowers… Truth be told, this is almost more marc d’Armagnac than ‘fine’, but then again, aren’t we in Ténarèze? Mouth: increasingly on the marc side, with fresh fruit, liquorice, pips and stalks, lemon-mint, and quite simply herbs. A very faint resinous side, young fir needles… Finish: it retreats a little towards the skins, pips and stalks, but as lovers of marc, we can only appreciate this greatly. Comments: it’s distinctive, unusual, a little wild and certainly very rustic, but it’s terrific, even if we have to intellectualise the whole thing a little bit. But were the grapes destemmed or not?
SGP:371 - 88 points.

Couzard-Lassalle 20 yo 2005/2026 (49.5%, Darroze, armagnac.de, Bas-armagnac, cask #R116)

Couzard-Lassalle is the other name for Lous Pibous, and sadly this is their very last vintage! And 100% folle blanche. Colour: full gold. Nose: it kicks off with oils, waxes, and even a little fresh rubber, rather like a malt whisky. Indeed. Then come varnishes, glues, fresh paint, rather as in a young bourbon. Indeed. And finally, the apricots and peaches arrive, together with prunes, plums and service-tree berries… Mouth: it’s all happening on the palate, developing at breakneck speed towards grapefruit, melon skin, jasmine tea, jujubes and pine nuts. This is a vigorous, terroir-driven armagnac, certainly not some drawing-room tipple. Finish: it loosens up, becoming more citrusy, more on oranges of all kinds, with even a few echoes of Martinique. Right, maw-tinique. Comments: some serious chewiness in this Lous Pibous/Couzard Lassalle which, as we used to say back in the day, takes no prisoners.
SGP:461 - 89 points.

The little Aurensan put up one hell of a fight! Right, let’s carry on…

Domaine Pouy 25 yo 1998/2025 (57.9%, L’Encantada, Piacere Rinato/Pietramore, Ténarèze, cask #99)

Some ugni blanc and colombard, probably in perfect symbiosis. And above all, Ténarèze. Colour: full gold. Nose: we’re extremely close to the Couzard-Lassalle. Lovely tension, lovely fatness, plenty of texture on the nose. With water: little mints, camphor, paraffin oil, almond milk… Mouth (neat): same elements, with an even more pronounced varnish-and-glue side. Zests, bitter almonds, fir needles, buds, kirsch… With water: figs, pine-nut tea and, above all, a massive whack of wood glue come charging in, it’s almost a little ‘too much’. It reminds me of the wild cherry and morello cherry eaux-de-vie from Marcel Windholtz in Ribeauvillé, top distiller in Alsace. Finish: long, rustic, bitter, almost rubbery. Comments: I think this really is a Ténarèze for die-hard fanatics of the extreme de la muerte.
SGP:361 - 87 points.

Baron Gaston Legrand 1986/2026 (47.1%, Grape of the Art, Bas-armagnac, cask #32)

Some baco and ugni blanc. By the way, psst, you’ve forgotten a zero in the price of this +/- 40-year-old armagnac, haven’t you? I mean, €135? What would the shoddiest of Scottish distilleries do in these circumstances? Why yes, bang, €1,350. Injustice rule this world, I tell you… Colour: full gold. Nose: this is the style of armagnac that comes rather close to cognac, with peaches in syrup, milk chocolate, very gentle honeys, herbal teas (rosehip, camomile) and a wee trail of exotic fruits, heading towards tinned mangoes. It’s lovely, not extravagant, but very elegant. Mouth: excellent, once again a little cognac-esque, with green tea, apple and peach peelings, herbal teas, then increasingly buds, leaves, herbs… Truth be told, it becomes a little dry but remains elegant. The wood is a little more noticeable, gentian, liquorice wood, hojicha… Finish: medium in length, drying out a little, towards wood glue and conifer buds. Comments: excellent, but perhaps it would be better to avoid the finish, which, let’s admit it, is a very tricky thing to do. Our powers remain rather limited, you see.
SGP:451 - 88 points.

Domaine Ludon 26 yo 1998/2026 (51%, L’Encantada, Piacere Rinato/Pietramore, Bas-armagnac, cask #178)

Pure folle blanche here. We have deep hopes, let that be said… Colour: full gold. Nose: ah, here comes the fruit. Mirabelles, peaches, apricots, all ultra-ripe and coated with a little varnish and kirsch. This is the folle blanche expressing itself in full. With water: oh, this is beautiful, thuja wood, argan oil, prickly pear liqueur, blood orange… Mouth (neat): an incredible cavalcade of essences and juices, rose, orange blossom, liquorice… this really is very beautiful. With water: of course. Oranges peeled down to the flesh, accompanied by rose liqueur, violet and olive oil. Killer stuff. Finish: same. Very beautiful. Comments: a much clearer line here, purer, easier. We like things easy at Château WF, let that be said. As Angus would say, we’re not masochists.
SGP:551 - 90 points.

Veuve Goudoulin 85 yo (41.6%, OB, barrique #1, +/-2022)

Not too sure if and when this was bottled, it was probably vatted later on, but surely, we couldn’t resist an armagnac that’s even older (and less coloured) than the president of the United States, could we? Colour: amber. Nose: this old-school armagnac style is actually magnificent, despite being somewhat old-fashioned, even downright antiquated. Cocoa butter, old Meursault, incense and rosewood, cinnamon, ‘discreet’ rosewater, soft caramels… This really is a journey back in time. Mouth: it’s a little woody and soapy (and it loses quite a few points here), but it isn’t really fragile, it’s simply very woody. On the other hand, there are some very lovely spices centred around cinnamon and cumin. Finish: quite long, very bitter, resinous, but with a rather tremendous kind of elegance. Comments: this is a rather fragile old thing, no doubt well past its glory days (let’s say the Jimi Hendrix era), but moving and laden with history. Please, let’s remain magnanimous.
SGP:261 - 85 points.

More new armagnacs coming very soon, including, imagine, some from those rare varietals we mentioned hereabove…

Check the index of all armagnacs we've tasted