A nice overview of armagnac's place in the Spirit world. Although I agree with Patrick de Montal's assessment of the brandy's archaic and inexplicable labeling system (and his other efforts to modernise its image are admirable), I view attempts to position it as a cocktail mixer misguided. Vying to replacing vodka, a colorless, flavorless and odorless spirit, will eventually tarnish armagnac's image as a luxury product. It would be akin to champagne releasing a line of canned spritzers. Better to promote the uniqueness and authenticity of France's oldest brandy. I see that independent cognac producers are now promoting the terroir and grapes used in their millisème cognacs; maybe independent armagnac producers have an advantage that they've not yet leveraged.
That's possible. I think they are making some advances with consumers outside of France. The problem is that they don't have the big marketing budgets like Cognac. And in France, it really is seen and something one's grandparents drank. So it's difficult to change that.
Thank you Chris for this excellent article! I'm not sure I agree with Tom. The cocktail is a step to pure unadulterated and high quality Armagnac, and especially young ones Straight from Cask. The Folle Blanche is a case in point. It can substitute itself to flavoured vodkas, but without additives. Once the discovery is made, then people will want to discover it straight. The bigger issue is, as Chris says, in the lack of big outfit to finance a strong sales and marketing team. To my understanding, the BNIA isn't as dynamic as it could be, and is still very centred on the scruffy brands. They also seem to need some quality process control. This would allow better quality without adulteration. In any event, the renewal will be through innovation and differentiation !
Yeah, I've really been enjoying experimenting with my bottle of blanche, trying different substitutions. Lots of potential. I think the BNIA is trying to shake things up a bit, bu the big problem is neither they or the Armagnac houses have much in the way of marketing budgets, esp compared to Cognac.
Where there is a way, there can be a will ! Personally, I think there is a lot of corporatism and lack of entrepreneurship. The product is great, but from what I hear the BNIA is protecting the old guard. If they wanted to, they could raise cash and prepare a real business plan for the region. As for the domains, they aren't giving themselves the means. The product is fantastic and they have much more leeway than in the Cognac region to innovate and turn the tables. A reporter from the NYT told me some of these armagnacs could easily replace US bourbons ! Some are grouping together, that will surely work for them. The day a really big Armagnac house emerges, like Hennessy, then they'll make their path !
A nice overview of armagnac's place in the Spirit world. Although I agree with Patrick de Montal's assessment of the brandy's archaic and inexplicable labeling system (and his other efforts to modernise its image are admirable), I view attempts to position it as a cocktail mixer misguided. Vying to replacing vodka, a colorless, flavorless and odorless spirit, will eventually tarnish armagnac's image as a luxury product. It would be akin to champagne releasing a line of canned spritzers. Better to promote the uniqueness and authenticity of France's oldest brandy. I see that independent cognac producers are now promoting the terroir and grapes used in their millisème cognacs; maybe independent armagnac producers have an advantage that they've not yet leveraged.
That's possible. I think they are making some advances with consumers outside of France. The problem is that they don't have the big marketing budgets like Cognac. And in France, it really is seen and something one's grandparents drank. So it's difficult to change that.
Thank you Chris for this excellent article! I'm not sure I agree with Tom. The cocktail is a step to pure unadulterated and high quality Armagnac, and especially young ones Straight from Cask. The Folle Blanche is a case in point. It can substitute itself to flavoured vodkas, but without additives. Once the discovery is made, then people will want to discover it straight. The bigger issue is, as Chris says, in the lack of big outfit to finance a strong sales and marketing team. To my understanding, the BNIA isn't as dynamic as it could be, and is still very centred on the scruffy brands. They also seem to need some quality process control. This would allow better quality without adulteration. In any event, the renewal will be through innovation and differentiation !
Yeah, I've really been enjoying experimenting with my bottle of blanche, trying different substitutions. Lots of potential. I think the BNIA is trying to shake things up a bit, bu the big problem is neither they or the Armagnac houses have much in the way of marketing budgets, esp compared to Cognac.
Where there is a way, there can be a will ! Personally, I think there is a lot of corporatism and lack of entrepreneurship. The product is great, but from what I hear the BNIA is protecting the old guard. If they wanted to, they could raise cash and prepare a real business plan for the region. As for the domains, they aren't giving themselves the means. The product is fantastic and they have much more leeway than in the Cognac region to innovate and turn the tables. A reporter from the NYT told me some of these armagnacs could easily replace US bourbons ! Some are grouping together, that will surely work for them. The day a really big Armagnac house emerges, like Hennessy, then they'll make their path !