Castarede Armagnac Napoleon 15 years 40% 700ml

Maison Castarède is a family-run Armagnac house with centuries of distilling history. It is located just south of the town of Mauléon-d'Armagnac, within the Bas-Armagnac subregion.

The Castarde estate features a 17th-century château, which has served as the site of distillation and aging since it was acquired by the family in the late 20th century.

The company began as an Armagnac négociant in the early 1800s under the name Jules Nismes Delclou & Cie. In 1818, the family was ennobled by Louis XVIII and adopted the Castarde name for the business, which became the first officially declared Armagnac trading house after being entered into the official trade register in 1832.

In the 1980s, the family purchased Château de Maniban, which has since become Castarède’s headquarters. The château and estate are named for their original owners, the Maniban family, who are credited with introducing the court of Toulouse to Armagnac.

The Château de Maniban estate covers 16 hectares (40 acres) of vineyards, primarily planted with:

• Folle Blanche
• Ugni Blanc
• Colombard
• Baco Blanc (introduced in 2015)
  

The vines grow in clay and loam soils that are rich in acidity and iron.

Distillation is carried out using a continuous alembic still that is over 50 years old. The freshly distilled eau-de-vie is first transferred into new French oak barrels for aging. After several years, the spirit is moved into older barrels for the remainder—and majority—of its maturation.