Armagnac is a brandy of French wine with a registered designation of origin (AOC) produced in the historical region of Gascogne, divided between the departments of the Landes, the Gers, and Lot-et-Garonne in the South-West of France.
Armagnac is the oldest distillate of wine in France and perhaps in the world, although there is no clear evidence of its birth before Scotch whiskey, whose paternity is also debated by the Irish.
The Armagnac is rarely the result of assemblages of distillates from various vintages, therefore on the label appears the year of the harvest of the grapes used as raw material, as is done for wine. The only exception to the use of the vintage, the large reserves that are often the result of assemblages of the best historical harvests, jealously kept in the cellar.
