Darroze Les Grands Assemblages 12 Year

A delicate 12-year-old Brandy by Darroze in Armagnac, France. It has an aromatic birth with notes of tree & stewed fruits, wood, herbs & spices; while a rich & spicy life adds notes of cinnamon, licorice, beer, grape & biscuit; that led to a tannic & leathered death of medium length with notes of oak & caramel. August 2017

In actuality, I opened a bottle (to share) of Francis Darroze Bas-Armagnac that was distilled in 1966 and remained unsealed until opened in 2019. 99 proof. Domaine de Saint-Aubin Le Houga (Yers) is also on the label. A cognac loving friend who also tasted it thought it was excellent. To me, palette was spicy up front; a bit of a grape finish possibly, but I had to seek it out over the warmth on the tongue.