Château de Léberon

Cassaigne, Gascogne, France

Located in the heart of Ténarèze, the Rozès family has been stewarding this medieval estate since 1939. While the region is famous for Armagnac, the approach at Léberon is what sets them apart from the industrial norm. This is spirit production with a wine-grower's soul.

Everything starts with the soil. The 15 hectares of vines - predominantly Ugni Blanc and Colombard, with some vines reaching over 60 years of age - sit on a unique geological crossroads of clay, limestone, and sand. The family treats the vineyard as a living ecosystem, focusing on biodiversity and employing a philosophy that is worlds apart from the vast majority of their neighbours. 

The transition from grape to glass is handled with a level of restraint that mirrors our favorite low-intervention winemakers  Only indigenous yeasts are used to ferment the base wines. No sugar, no caramel coloring, and - most importantly - no "boisé" (oak extract) are used in the final product. What you taste is the pure expression of the fruit and the wood. The Armagnacs are bottled brut de fût. They aren't diluted with water to reach a commercial ABV; they remain exactly as they came out of the barrel, vibrating with energy and texture.

Whether it’s their unique ‘Solera’ Armagnac - bottled from the family’s perpetual reserve which has been going for 25 years - or their hauntingly complex vintage bottlings dating back decades, Léberon’s spirits possess a vinous quality. They are structured, aromatic, and deeply tied to the land.

Alongside their Armagnacs, the family also produces distinctive and alluring Vins Mutés - wines fortified with 3-year-old Armagnac - where both the base wines and fortifying spirit are home-grown, and of a quality that surpasses the more well-known options.  The Vin Muté Colombard also comes from a perpetual reserve nestled in the family cellar, and dating back to 1987, while the Merlot presents a younger, fresher, and fruitier expression, that still delivers subtle spice and complexity.   

Caroline and Sébastien Rozès aren’t following the hype of the spirits world that surrounds them, they are simply making honest, powerful reflections of their land, made with the utmost care and respect.