During our blinded vintage blend, right after the malolactic fermentations and we have part of the wines left, it is painful to part with them by selling them in bulk to make a wine for trade or to give it to the 'State (in addition to the compulsory fee). Always favoring the balance and complexity of the château-hourtin-ducasse, these "remains" are very contrasted from one year to the next and do not allow us to build a second wine. Such a waste ! But since the 2017 vintage, it's over; we are vintage boilers and we produce gin. Our juices under the arm, it is in Cocumont (47) that this year, we found our burner. He had settled there for a day of distillation, with his old and beautiful still made of copper and on wheels. It was again a very nice moment, rich in learning and beautiful encounters, which ended around an oxtail followed by a piece of beef with shallots cooked in the hearth of the still.

What a treat! We left with our alcohol. Pure? No, not quite. European legislation requires the use of 96% alcohol and then diluting it to go back above 37%. So alcohol has neither aromas nor personality. This is why some prefer to buy an already pure alcohol from cereals or others. We do not! Our gin is not gin because we have chosen to only distill it at 50% to preserve its character and its audacity through the water contained by our grapes, thus preserved. The terroir, the vines and all that nature offered them in 2019 participated, we did not want to damage it. Then, we made there macerate grains of juniper (obviously! To make gin ...), then the nettles picked up in our garden, dried over a wood fire. They give it its naturally pale green color and freshness. Some zest of pink pomelo and a few grains of white pepper have optimized its lively and invigorating character. Then bottled, corked and labeled at home, it was again cocooned "the boss' snifter".