Summer over Bas Armagnac is dry and white with light. The vines run in long rows, and the ground crunches faintly underfoot between them. That landscape is what a bottle from 1924 is built from: sun, sand and a harvest turned into brandy long before any of us were here.
The expert's description
Baron Gaston Legrand 1924 Vintage Appellation Bas Armagnac Controlee 40% is a Vintage Bas Armagnac from Gascony, single distilled on an alambic armagnacais, matured in black oak casks and bottled at 40%.
Behind the range stands Lhéraud, a French house dating from 1680, which owns and bottles Baron Gaston Legrand. The vintages come from Bas Armagnac at the western end of the appellation, where the houses have spent generations building a reputation for the finest spirit in Gascony.
The 1924 vintage comes from Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche and Colombard. The wine was distilled once on an alambic armagnacais, not twice as they do in Cognac. That single pass explains Armagnac's heavier, earthier starting point, and it is exactly the character that decades in cask have slowly polished.
The spirit first went into new black oak casks of 700 to 1,200 litres, where the tannins and dry timber notes were laid down. It then moved to older casks, where little new oak influence arrives. The rest was waiting. Bottling took place at 40%, with the vintage never blended with anything else.
The bottle comes in a wooden case with a canvas bag and a spare stopper, and the label guarantees the vintage.
Tasting notes
Nose
Dried apricot and peach, sweet and dusty at once. Sandalwood and honey follow, and behind them a dry ginger note that gives the age away. Not heavy, more warm and open.
Palate
Silky, with a clear sweetness of candied orange. The apricot from the nose holds on, the honey turns darker across the tongue, and ginger cuts a dry edge in towards the end. Oak reads as a quiet dryness underneath it all.
Finish
Medium-long to long and dry. Ginger and sandalwood have the last word while the fruit retreats slowly, leaving a faintly bitter, spiced warmth.
Specifications
Name: Baron Gaston Legrand 1924 Vintage Appellation Bas Armagnac Controlee 40%
Bottler: Lhéraud
Region/Country: Bas Armagnac, Gascony, France
Type: Vintage Bas Armagnac
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Black oak casks of 700-1200 litres, new casks first and older casks afterwards
Distillation method: Single distilled on an alambic armagnacais
Distilled: 1924
Flavour profile
Dried apricot · Honey · Ginger · Sandalwood · Rancio
Investment potential
High. 1924 cannot be recreated, and no new casks are being set aside under that vintage. Bas Armagnac, the great age and the vintage guarantee on the label are three of the factors that keep old French brandies in demand among collectors.
Did you know?
Bas Armagnac sits on a layer of fine, reddish sand the French call sables fauves. The sand drains quickly and warms easily, and it is what gives the area its reputation for the softest, most fruit-driven spirits in all of Armagnac.
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