When we blend our vintages blind after the malolactic fermentations, and we're left with a portion of the wines we didn't select in the blend, it's always frustrating to part with it by selling it in bulk; treatments with herbal infusions, shearing by the ewes, gentle pruning... all the parcels have been equally pampered throughout the campaign, so yes, it's painful! But in keeping with Château Hourtin-Ducasse's focus on balance and complexity, these "leftovers" can be very contrasting; they don't allow us to build a 2nd wine. What a waste! But since the 2017 vintage, it's all over! We're boilers and we produce gin. For this new production, our wines went to Geai, in Charente-Maritime to be distilled in a beautiful Stupfler© pot-still from the 1920s. The stills made by this Bordeaux suburb are world-renowned for the finesse of the resulting distillates. Then, a single pass for less loss of aroma, with the elimination of the more aggressive pouring heads, and our wines became alcohol. Pure? No, not quite. European legislation requires the use of 96% alcohol, then dilution to bring it back above 37.5%. In this way, the alcohol has neither aroma nor personality. That's why some people prefer to buy alcohol that's already pure, from cereals or other sources.

So, no, our gin is not gin. In Europe... in Los Angeles, Chengdu and Matakohe, it is! In any case, we've chosen to distill only 50% of it, to preserve its character and boldness through the water contained in our grapes. The terroir, the vines and everything nature has to offer all play their part. Maceration, bottling, corking and labeling are all done in-house. We call it "the boss's hooch".