At Chateau du Tariquet the wine is distilled using a continuous copper still, specific to the production of Armagnac. This wood-burning still warms the air with its vapours at the end of each autumn, when recently fermented wines are distilled to produce high quality brandy, while respecting the age-old traditions on which the brandy's legendary reputation has been built.
Tariquet's Bas-Armagnac brandies are aged in oak barrels. The only exception being La Blanche, a clear eau-de-vie. Otherwise, all the eau-de-vie distilled is aged in barrels that are specifically selected to release each brandy's full potential. As a general rule, a selected eau-de-vie will age in a traditional cellar, with a beaten-earth floor and timber framework, housing fine-grained French oak barrels. These are either 400-litre new oak barrels or 225-litre or 300-litre barrels that previously contained wine. We select the type of barrel based on the quality of each eau-de-vie. As soon as the cellar master feels an optimum balance has been reached between the oak and the brandy, the latter is transferred into older and/or larger barrels. It is here that the oak's vanilla tones gradually blend with the notes of candied fruit in the Armagnac. Only time then works its magic, allowing the Bas-Armagnac to achieve its full potential with age.
