• Home
• Wines
• News
• Services
• About us
• Contact us
• Links

Three years ago we got one bottle of Tariquet in a mixed lot from the auction and we were so pleased with it we decided to visit the winery. Not knowing before hand that this would be one of the best choices we could have made. Yves Grassa who runs the family estate of Domaine du Tariquet has done a sublime job in transforming a primarily Armagnac producing estate in a true winery with the most amazing white wines still for a really good price. Keeping the prices affordable and off the supermarket shelves is a conscientious decision which works well as it means less pressure and the quality can be safeguarded at all times.

Just a bit more about the history of Domaine du Tariquet. The long family tradition was really revived in 1972 by Pierre Grassa who started producing "again" excellent Armagnacs. His Son Yves took over in 1982 and "disobeyed" his father's wish and he was the first to He was the first in the region to dare to plant Chardonnay, Sauvignon or Chenin grapes, which were far from popular in those days. Worse still, he conjured up combinations of sworn enemies such as Chardonnay with Sauvignon, or Chenin with Chardonnay. The Tariquet brand was born of contemplation, rebellion and reason, followed by continuous observation and improvement. Both in the vineyard, and in the wine cellar, as only a true winemaker makes wine in the midst of his vineyard. Defying his detractors, Yves Grassa took on the challenge of producing white wine and was duly rewarded for his work by being selected as Winemaker of The Year in 1987. Not a bad decision!

Actually we would like to highlight all wines, but that's not possible. Are you not a big Chardonnay fan take our word that we have converted many with the Chenin/Chardonnay a brilliant smooth wine with character. The Cote de Tariquet is really interesting because it is also a blend of chardonnay but this time with Sauvignon (50%/50%), which makes it surprisingly complex. It works really well because of the balance between the mineral character of the Sauvignon supported by the round finesse of Chardonnay. Excellent with foie gras, fish and white meats. The UK market is slowly opening up to great medium sweet to sweet wines and the Premier Grives from Tariquet is an ideal wine to start with. In Gascony the early frosts at the end of Autumn announces the arrival of the first thrushes (in French: "grives"). This is also the signal to begin the harvest of the Gros Manseng grapes for this wine which are harvested one month after full maturity. An astonishing wine with intense aromatic concentration and a slight sweetness due to the natural residual sugar. A versatile wine either on its own or “offering true Gascon resistance to a lobster from Brittany” as the winemaker says. Another final note is that we list also two of the armagnacs from Domaine du Tariquet. They really ensured not to forget where their roots lay and the Armagnacs are fantastic.

If you are looking for a specific wine and do not find it on our list you can always drop us a line at info@advintage-wines.co.uk. In addition to the wines we list we have access to literally thousands of other wines which we can always get at the best possible prices - anything from Albarino to Zinfandel!