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Domaine Chiroulet is located in one of the most beautiful areas of the Côtes de Gascogne, about 8 kilometers north of Condom (yes, that is really the town’s name.) The landscape covers the gently rolling hills with a patchwork of colors, and the region has been referred to as the Tuscany of southwest France. Situated on the highest slopes in Gascony (180 meters altitude), Chiroulet owes its name to the local patois word chiroula meaning wind that whistles. The family farms 45 hectares of vines aged between 10 and 40-years-old. Most of the vines face due south, allowing the chiroula to provide dry conditions in the vineyards
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The history of Domaine Chiroulet dates back six generations, since before the outbreak of phylloxera in 1893. At the beginning of the 20th century and until the early 1930s, Alban Sourbès owned the estate. It was then taken over in 1935 by his niece, Suzanne Capmartin, and her husband, Albert Fezas. Plans to extend the vineyard were hindered during the Second World War when hardships prevented Suzanne and Albert from expanding. In 1969, their son Michel Fezas and his wife Arlette restructured and enlarged the property. Chiroulet, like many of the farms in the area, was polycultural and, in addition to vines (whose wine was either sold to the cooperative or distilled), the farm drew revenue from sunflowers, corn and other crops.
Philippe Fezas grew up at the domaine working in the vineyards on the weekends and catching the wine bug. At university he graduated with an enology degree and, after staging at some other wine domaines in the southwest, was offered a job at Seguin Moreau, the famous cooperage located in Cognac that supplies barrels for top estates all around the world. After a decade, Philippe found himself in many of these cellars, recommending the wood that legendary producers in the Medoc, northern Spain, and central Italy would be using.
On weekends and during his vacations, Philippe Fezas continued to study each parcel of vines at the family domaine to determine upon which soils each of his grapes used to make wine would be planted. A good deal of Chiroulet is comprised of fine clay, not unlike the soils in Saint-Émilion. Like in that famous appellation, merlot is the preferred grape for Chiroulet’s red wines, which helps give them fresh fruit flavors. Complementary grapes include cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and tannat, which provides freshness and structure. Côtes de Gascogne Rouge once meant tannic, one-dimensional wine that was mainly employed to wash down the rich local cuisine. Not so anymore—these red wines have more in common with moderately priced Bordeaux than with the majority of its Gascon neighbors, and for these, Chiroulet has become a local star
The parcels for white wine are mostly clay and limestone, although certain slopes contain chalky outcrops called retzine, which help intensify the white wine’s floral and mineral profile. This soil is ideal for the typical white grapes of the region planted here: gros manseng, colombard, ugni blanc, and sauvignon blanc
But, of course, this is Gascony and, in addition to wine, nearly all producers in the Côtes de Gascogne also make armgagnac. Such is the case with Chiroulet, whose wines I imported for over 25 years. And while I often tasted and enjoyed the armagnac after hanging out with Philippe and tasting through his growing number of excellent wines, I never bought any to import for a couple of reasons: 1. I already had a good deal of producers in the portfolio to focus on. 2. I found the armagnacs at Chiroulet had been blended with some of the permitted additives, so that they lost some of their finesse and charm
One day in 2022, I asked Philippe if he had any single vintages in barrel that had not received a visit from the enologist. After some reflection, he directed me toward a barrel that had recently been moved to a newly cleaned out storage room. After tasting it, I decided to buy the entire piece (local term for a 400 liter barrel). Here are the details on what was inside: From the 1988 vintage, the armagnac was made with 100% ugni blanc (from 40-year-old vines) grown on clay and limestone soils and distilled in November a travelling column still by Patrick Mikalouski. The clear spirit exited the still at 55% ABV and went into a 400-liter wide-grained barrel from Seguin-Moreau. The barrel rested in an old, humid chai that once housed the workshop of the hamlet’s former blacksmith. Every couple of years, the barrel was aerated to promote the evaporation of esters, with its contents going back into the same barrel. After 35 years, it was bottled at cask strength with nothing else added.
This single barrel Armagnac has a lovely deep amber color with gold highlights. Its nose emits aromas of dried plum, toffee, and an ethereal note of violet. On the palate, additional flavors of fig, butterscotch, chocolate, and fine spices glide across a silky texture before gradually dissipating on the spirit’s long finish
There is a trend for very strong armagnacs in the 50% + ABV, often tasted in a flight with other armagnacs with similar high octane. While that type of armagnac certainly has its followers, this armagnac is softer, rounder, and much more user friendly. This is gentle, whose Ténarèze origins have been tamed through time, and whose fire has mellowed through natural evaporation under ideal aging conditions.
