NV VS

The Braastad family controls three separate brands, all based in Jarnac: Braastad, Tiffon, and Château de Triac. Sverre Braastad emigrated from Norway in the early 20th century and married Edith Rousseau, whose father Médéric founded Tiffon in 1875. Eventually, Braastad took over Tiffon from his father-in-law. Though it’s still under family control, Norway’s liquor giant Arcus bought a significant stake in the company in the 1990s, bolstering the Braastad brand for the Norwegian market. Clearly, the Scandinavian connections still run deep (they’ve even collaborated with a member of ABBA on a special bottling). The family currently holds about 100 hectares, mostly in Fins Bois but also in Grand Champagne, and also buys wine from dozens of growers in other crus.

One of the largest producers in Armagnac, Tariquet is a massive, modern operation with 1,125 hectares of vineyards. Most of that is for wine production, but about 10% is reserved for growing Ugni Blanc, Baco, and Folle Blanche for Armagnac. To get a sense of how massive Tariquet is compared to the small estates, consider this: there are only 150 acres of Folle Blanche grown in all of Armagnac; Tariquet owns 25 acres of it. Despite Tariquet’s size, their commitment to high-quality brandy is admirable. Some of the estate bottlings, such as Legendaire, are classics. Tariquet is also committed to growing plant du graisse, one of the forgotten grape of Armagnac – this experiment began during the days when it was feared that hybrid Baco banned by the EU.

One of the largest producers in Armagnac, Tariquet is a massive, modern operation with 1,125 hectares of vineyards. Most of that is for wine production, but about 10% is reserved for growing Ugni Blanc, Baco, and Folle Blanche for Armagnac. To get a sense of how massive Tariquet is compared to the small estates, consider this: there are only 150 acres of Folle Blanche grown in all of Armagnac; Tariquet owns 25 acres of it. Despite Tariquet’s size, their commitment to high-quality brandy is admirable. Some of the estate bottlings, such as Legendaire, are classics. Tariquet is also committed to growing plant du graisse, one of the forgotten grape of Armagnac – this experiment began during the days when it was feared that hybrid Baco banned by the EU.