Château de Lacquy
11 generations of expertise in producing great Armagnac
Château de Lacquy is the oldest family-owned producer of Armagnac. This winery was founded for more than three centuries, in 1712. Before that the area belonged to other great winemakers´ family, family Pontac known for being the owner of Château Haut-Brion. Château de Lacquy is located in the region of “Bas-Armagnac” and more specifically in the « Grand-Bas » making it one of the northernmost property of Armagnac. The Château de Lacquy covers 400 hectares of which 20 planted with vines. The rest of the area is occupied by lakes, grain and oak forests, the oldest were planted in the 18th century during the reign of Louis XV.
The buildings of the the castle were built in 1777 and remodeled in 1910. The stone cellars and Gascogne Oak were built in 1870 for the ageing of the Armagnac (stone walls, dirt surface, attic for insulation).
Currently the property is managed and owned by the Count Gilles de Boisséson perpetuating with passion 10 generations of know-how, the eleventh generation is already in the process to take over.
“The Château de Lacquy is a small family world where people who work here also live on the property, often for generations. For example, the current guardian of the barrel cellar was born here on the property and his grandparents were already working here.
At the end of the Second World War we had almost 80 hectares of vines but in the 50s and 60s due to various events the area that was planted with vines was greatly diminished. But I planned to re-increase the surface area of the vineyard.
Here we work and we make plans for the long term.”(Gilles de Boisséson)
Where does the name Château de Lacquy come from?
“We do not know exactly. I think ‘LACQUY’ is the fact that there are a lot of lakes around the Château. Most of these lakes are also part of the property.
A few other person think that the name come from the ancient Gallo-Roman villa that was here.“ (Gilles de Boisséson)
Focus on Gilles de Boisséson, owner of Château de Lacquy: What made you decide to take over the work of your father?
“It is difficult to answer this question. This property is in my family for 300 years and therefore the question of succession was not really a choice. This decision was made there of itself early. As against the decision to continue to make Armagnac and increase our production falls firstly because I believe in the future of this product in general, and also of passion. Passion for a luxury product in the best tradition, expressing the terroir of Lacquy.
I am a link in a chain of transmission of values and traditions, each generation inherits the stocks of previous generations and leaving a stock for future generations with his personal brand.
In fact I think the wines and some spirits with Armagnac, resemble their owners. We therefore transmits more than a volume of alcohol in a barrel, it also conveys a bit of itself, something that looks like you and will be there in 50 or 60 years.
Produce Armagnac is therefore a form of art in which one expresses his personality at the time. “ (Gilles de Boisséson)
What characterizes the Armagnac of the Château de Lacquy ?
“These are very long Armagnac palate, very aromatic, sweet, feminine, round, complex and in which the land is clearly felt. We always distill our Armagnacs at 52 ° C.
We distil at 52 ° C. Eaux-de-vie are distilled, vinified and aged by grapes to have a better vision of what each can bring to the blend. Unlike a lot we do not add caramel to get our colors. They remain perfectly pure. Throughout the development of our Armagnacs we try to magnify our terroirs.“ (Gilles de Boisséson)
I think what differentiates them is the very first on the palate is slightly grainy, creamy, fat but also toast aromas commonly found in the finish. It is also frequently find notes of brioche and pastries in Armagnac of the Château de Lacquy.
Side story:
“My grandmother during the second world war, was part of the resistance. In first time she often hosted agents of resistance for help them to go to Spain. In a second time she created a groupe of resistance fighters (80 people) in the bush of the Domaine. Military equipment were even dropped over the property. Unfortunately at a time given to prevent the German army my grandmother had to go into the bush for some time.
There are still some vestiges of that period. I remember when I was a kid we had found an English quartz military radio and played with …. “(Gilles de Boisséson)
Thanks to Gilles de Boisséson for the hospitality
Choukroun Chicheportiche Jonathan
Château de Lacquy
406, route de l’Armagnac
40120 Lacquy
+33 (0) 5 58 03 88 22
