Baron Gaston Legrand 1953 Vintage Appellation Bas Armagnac Controlee 40%

Down in the cellar in Gascony the casks stand in rows and the light only reaches in as stripes. Year after year a small share of the 1953 vintage has evaporated through the wood and gone into the air. What is left has grown softer with every winter.

The expert's description

Baron Gaston Legrand 1953 Vintage Appellation Bas Armagnac Controlee 40% is a Vintage Bas Armagnac from Gascony in south-west France, single distilled on an alambic armagnacais, matured in black oak casks and bottled at 40%.

The Baron Gaston Legrand series gathers single vintages from Bas Armagnac, and it is owned and bottled by Lhéraud, a house that has been distilling in France since 1680. Behind this bottle sit the grapes Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche and Colombard from the western part of the appellation.

Armagnac is distilled once, in an alambic armagnacais, and comes off at low strength. That is the whole difference: the spirit is never stripped of the grape's own character, and it is that character which slowly unfolds in cask.

Maturation begins in new black oak casks of 700 to 1200 litres, where the wood hands over tannins and dry notes. The spirit is then moved to older casks that no longer pull hard, and there it stays until bottling. The bottle comes in a wooden case with a spare stopper and a canvas bag.

Tasting notes

Nose

Violet and lime speak first, bright and almost delicate. Behind them lie peach and a dry vanilla tone, while the wood only shows itself as a distant, warm smell of furniture polish.

Palate

Peach and honey through the middle, framed by hazelnut and a dry wooden edge. The plum arrives late and brings a little sweetness with it, and the pepper keeps to the outer rim.

Finish

Medium length and light. Candied citrus peel first, then nuts, and at the very end a dry floral tone that will not quite let go.

Specifications

Name: Baron Gaston Legrand 1953 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
Distillation method: Single distilled on an alambic armagnacais
Distilled: 1953
Edition: Baron Gaston Legrand Vintage 1953

Flavour profile

Floral · Fruity · Citrus · Vanilla · Elegant

Investment potential

Medium. Old single vintages from Bas Armagnac are getting harder to source, and a house like Lhéraud releases its oldest casks only slowly.

Did you know?

An alambic armagnacais is a small continuous column found almost nowhere else in France. It runs the spirit through once and at low strength, and it is the reason Armagnac reads so differently in the glass from a spirit taken twice through a pot still.

See our full range of Armagnac

Frequently asked questions about Baron Gaston Legrand 1953 Vintage Appellation Bas Armagnac Controlee 40%

Does a 1953 vintage work as a birth year gift?

Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons people buy vintage Armagnac. The year on the label is the year the grapes were picked and distilled, so the bottle ties directly to one particular year. Armagnac exists in more old vintages than any other French spirit.

Is a Bas Armagnac from 1953 sensible to put away?

The potential is rated Medium. Nothing more is being produced from 1953, and the remaining casks from that decade keep dwindling. It is the age and Bas Armagnac's standing within the appellation that carry the interest.

Why is the vintage not blended with other years?

Because Armagnac is traditionally bottled as a single vintage. Everything in the bottle comes from one harvest, and no younger spirit is added to hit a set style. That turns every vintage into its own flavour profile rather than a repeatable house signature.

Should it be served chilled or at room temperature?

Room temperature. Cold shuts the aromas down, and an Armagnac with decades in cask needs warm hands around the glass to open up properly. Never put it in the fridge.

Who is behind Baron Gaston Legrand?

Lhéraud, a French spirits house founded in 1680. The house owns the series, selects the casks and handles the bottling of each individual vintage.

What do the large casks do to the flavour?

They slow maturation right down. A cask of 700 to 1200 litres has far less wood surface per litre than a whisky cask, so the spirit can lie for decades without being smothered in oak. The result is a spirit where the fruit still speaks clearly. The same thinking about large casks is found at Cognac Houses and Distilleries, where long maturation likewise calls for wood with little surface per litre.