Charles Neal Selections

The Château de Briat has a long and impressive history. Built in 1540, it first served as the hunting manor for Queen Jeanne d'Albret. Her son, Henri de Navarre, later Henri IV, King of France, often stayed in the castle, but in 1587 gave it to one of his fellow officers as a reward for saving his life in battle.

Charles Neal selections

The Bas-Armagnac has the particularity of giving the eaux de vie their softness and can be enjoyed when young; it is this particularity that gives it its reputation.
The Tenareze, with its clay soils, produces eaux de vie with more structure and power. At Pellehaut, we are proud of this terroir, which is the quality factor of both the wines and the Armagnacs produced on the estate. It is because of this variety and complexity of the soils that the wines of this vineyard are a lot more fruity and rich. It is also because of the geographic proximity of Bas-Armagnac, the vinification process and the choice of distillation and maturation; the eaux de vie of Chateau Pellehaut are fine, soft and complex. Proof of this lies with the numerous medals and commendations in the International press.

Charles Neal Selections

Castles have graced the property of what is now the Château de Ravignan since the 12th century. The name Ravignan itself comes from the deep ravines surrounding the property that once served as a natural defense.

Charles Neal Selections

Marguerite Lafitte and her daughter Martine run the domaine.  In 1975, an a gas-fueled alambic was built for the domaine. Its plates each contain nine exiting pipes for the vaporous spirit, something that gives greater contact with the incoming wine and, along with a low distillation temperature, ensures lots of potential flavorants. 

Charles Neal selections

Since the 1800's, the Camut family has grown 115 acres of apple trees in the Pays d'Auge, the finest growing region for Calvados. In Normandy, 800 types of apples are grown; the Camut family grow about 25 of these, all of which are hand-harvested at optimum maturity between October and mid-December. While pears are allowed in Calvados (actually mandatory in the Domfrontais region with a minimum of 30%), only apples grown on the Camut property are used in Camut Calvados.

Charles Neal Selections

While many people refer to it as an apple brandy, pears are also allowed in Calvados.  The southern appellation of Calvados, the Domfrontais, has clay and limestone soil much more suited to the strong, deep roots of pear trees. Appellation law insists that at least 30% of the cider to be distilled in the Domfrontais is made from pears. This pear influence makes not only for a lighter-colored spirit, but also one which emits a more feminine and elegant bouquet

Charles Neal Selections

The Dudognon family has produced cognac in the small town of Lignières Sonneville since 1776. This region is the heart of the famed Grande Champagne of Cognac, whose soil is largely composed of Campanian chalk.

Tequila Don Diego Santa is produced only by the traditional and time-proven manner of slowly cooking the Blue Agave in small batches, one small batch at a time, in stainless steel pots. This is without question an expensive and time consuming process but is the only way to make the finest quality tequilas and the only way the Tequilas of Don Diego Santa are made. The Tequilas for aging are barreled in white oak casks, Reposado for a minimum of 6 months and blended to other aged Tequilas as old as one year. Anejo is aged a minimum of eighteen months. Considerably longer than required by the Mexican Government or the Tequila Producers Consortium but absolutely necessary when one is committed to producing “only the best”!

Kosher Certified
The production of Tequila Don Diego Santa is so carefully maintained, the quality of the Blue Agave fruit to be distilled so carefully selected and the cleanliness of the distillery and the distillation process so well maintained that the Tequilas Don Diego Santa have been grated “Kosher Certification “ by Vaad Hakashrut of the Ashkenazi Kehilia in Mexico.

What is Ouzo?

First of all, what is Ouzo? Ouzo is an anise-based clear spirit that tastes a bit like black licorice.  The basic ingredients of Ouzo are anise seeds, alcohol from grapes, a variety of aromatic plants, herbs and spices, and crystal resin from the Mastic tree, unique to the Greek island, Chios.  Produced exclusively in Greece, Ouzo is made from secret recipes and production methods carefully protected by each producer.  These secrets relate to the source and type of anise seed, the combination of spices that enhance the anise flavor, the maceration timing (how long the aromatic seeds and herbs are soaked in alcohol to extract their flavor), the distillation process, and the source of the water used to bring the distillate to the desired proof (percent of alcohol). 

Unlike anise spirits such as Anisette, such as Sambuca, or Pernod and Pastis, which are sweet and typically produced by maceration, Ouzo is always distilled, and is smooth and dry.  When mixed with water or ice, ouzo turns white. This “magic” is a result of the alcohol level being diluted below 38% resulting in the release of anithol (anise extract), which remain suspended in the liquid, giving it a cloudy, milky white appearance.

The name “ouzo” by many accounts emanated from an incident in the 19th century in a northern Greek town, Tirnavos, located in Thessaly in northern Greece. Back then, the finest quality silks were exported from Tirnavos to Marseilles, France along the ancient “silk road.”  The shipping label on the crates was stamped in Italian, “USO Massalia,” which means, to be used by Marseilles.  USO Massalia was also used as a slang expression meaning something of top quality.  A dignitary visiting Tirnavos was offered some of the anise based spirit produced there, and declared it “USO Massalia.”  By word of mouth, USO became OUZO, and the rest is history!

For centuries, Ouzo has been considered a folk remedy in Greece.  Even today, old men in Greece sometimes refer to ouzo as “to farmako“, meaning the medicine.  Some of the many folk medicine uses for ouzo include: tooth ache relief, a liniment for soothing sore body parts, to calm the nervous system, a diuretic, an expectorant, and as an aid to digestion.

What is so Special about Plomari?

Plomari has always been the most celebrated ouzo producing area. The seafaring village of Plomari is perched on the southeastern shores of the Greek island of Lesvos, not far from the Turkish coast.  This meeting point of Asia and Europe is the island birthplace of this strong and fragrant spirit.  So excellent is the ouzo produced in Plomari that the Greek government a few years ago bestowed on Plomari a protected designation of origin seal, as a high quality source for ouzo.

Meletti

The Meletti Family has been producing extraordinary hand crafted cordials for generations. Silvio Meletti started the company in 1870 when he endeavored to produce an anise-flavored liqueur that would rival or surpass the best products of Italy and France. Through study and experimentation, Silvio developed innovative techniques and equipment.

As with any great product, the quality of the ingredients is what sets the best above the masses. Today, Silvio Meletti's sons, Aldo and Silvio, continue to select only the finest herbs and botanicals for all of their products. In fact, to insure the highest quality they grow many of the ingredients on their own estate.

Meletti Limoncello
Lemon trees have been cultivated on the Amalfi coast since 200 AD. The noble lemon has made its way through India, Asia, Greece and Italy. According to Greek Mythology it is the symbol of fruitfulness and love. And according to Italian Tradition, Limoncello liqueur is the elixir of life capable of curing everything from bad breath to a bad love life. The Meletti family selects the finest Sorrento lemons from groves located along the coast. This type of lemon is noted for its low acidity and thick skin. The rich oils give this liqueur its rich body and intriguing aroma. The lemons are hand-harvested in mid-October and quickly brought to the Meletti distillery. The production process is long and tedious with family supervision, at every level. The skins are macerated in pure alcohol for three months, and the liquid is blended with a sweet emulsion that is created from an old family recipe. The final blend is aged an additional three months before being bottled and released. Meletti Limoncello is pure and natural with no coloring or stabilizing additives.

Meletti Cioccolato
The Meletti family, through skillful blending, has created a delicious cocoa based liqueur. Meletti Cioccolato was created by Silvio Meletti as a winter drink, intended to be served warm. However, fans of Meletti cordials soon discovered its versatility. It can be used in a variety of drink and food recipes and is delicious cold as well as warm. As with all Meletti products, only the best ingredients are used and personal attention is afforded to every phase of production.

 Meletti Amaro
Meletti Amaro is made from a unique, proprietary blend of herbs and botanicals. The flavors of these carefully selected ingredients are obtained through the cold-extraction process known as percolation. The process is similar to brewing coffee. Much like a coffee pot, an assortment of ingredients is placed in the upper section of the still, and alcohol flavored with additional ingredients is pumped over and through it. This pumping and percolation is repeated continuously until the Meletti family determines the Amaro is ready to be filtered and bottled. Meletti Amaro is a delightfully aromatic liqueur that is excellent after a meal as an aid to digestion.

Meletti Sambuca
Sambuca is a licorice-flavored liqueur that derives its flavor from the gentle cold infusion of the elder bush, known in Latin as “sambucus”. The fruit from the elder bush is steeped in alcohol at very cold temperatures. This flavorful mixture is then aged for four months and is cut to proof before bottling. The extended aging is what makes Meletti Sambuca stand head and shoulders above the competition. Sambuca is richer in body than anisette and has an underlying floral character.

Meletti Anisette
The very special flavor of Meletti Anisette is a result of slow evaporative distillation and the quality of the anise (Pimpinella Anisum) that is grown in the clay soil near Ascoli Piceno. During distillation Meletti discards the first and last portions of the distillate because they contain elements of bitterness. They keep only the “heart”, or middle portion, to ensure that the flavors are concentrated and consistent. Once distilled at high alcoholic strength, a second distillation of other spices is added. The liqueur is then transferred to 10,000 liter tanks for four months of aging, adjusted for proof, and bottled. The resulting anisette is rich, smooth, and exceptionally flavorful.