The Velvet Flame Earthier and warmer than Cognac, Armagnac is France's oldest spirit and, say connoisseurs, its most complex. By Nancy Ross Ryan Photo by Laurie Proffitt

Armagnac -- a rustic, beautiful, sunny region in Southern France -- is the birthplace of a brandy that many prefer to Cognac. At its best Armagnac delivers sensations of earth and fire, raw power and refined complexity effortlessly reconciled on the palate. Armagnac is France's oldest spirit as well. Production was booming by 1442, thanks to the ancient Romans who first brought wine grapes to what was then Gaul, and the Moors. who introduced distillation in the Middle Ages. Armagnac was being distilled 200 years before Cognac. Today, however, Cognac is better known and, writes F. Paul Pacult in Kindred Spirits (Hyperion, 1997) "For every 100 bottles of Cognac sold around the world, only six bottles of Armagnac are sold." But for many, Armagnac embodies the artisinal ideal. Some further generalizations: Armagnac is distilled only once in continuous stills at low temperatures so many of the congeners, fruit and esters remain as flavors in the spirit. (A few producers use pot stills but, according to one expert, they watch the process carefully, using only the heart of the distillation to ensure these flavors.) Cognac is distilled twice in pot stills resulting in a more refined spirit. Armagnac is aged in black oak; Cognac is aged in white Limousin and Tronçais oak. Both Armagnac and Cognac are made from white grapes -- ugni blanc, folle blanche and colombard, but only Armagnac is allowed to use a hybrid grape, the baco. Armagnac is also the birthplace of D'Artagnan, one of the famous Three Musketeers. So in their honor, we chose Three Connoisseurs to query about Armagnac. Daniel Johnnes, opening wine director of New York's groundbreaking French restaurant Montrachet, the first French restaurant that was neither fancy in decor nor a temple of haute cuisine to get three stars from The New York Times. Johnnes is also author of Daniel Johnnes' Top 200 Wines (Penguin, 1996). The second connoisseur is Leonard Solomon, proprietor of Chicago's Leonard Solomon's Wines & Spirits (a firm more than a half-century old), who, in his teen years was somewhat swashbuckling as a champion fencer. Solomon is one of 15 Americans inducted into the French society Compagnie des Mousquetaires d'Armagnac, all of whom swear an eternal oath of loyalty to Armagnac -- "Tous pour un, un pour tous." Says Solomon, "I was inducted by the late Count de Montesquiou, a descendant of D'Artagnan." The third connoisseur is Chris Meeske, sommelier at Los Angeles' famous restaurant Patina, voted the city's favorite year after year. Meeske not only caters to the tastes of the rich and famous, but coddles the knowing palates of visiting celebrity chefs who drop in the sample the Cal-Ital cuisine of Chef-owner Joachim Splichal. When asked the difference between Cognac and Armagnac -- and Cognac and Armagnac drinkers, Solomon says, "It's a different terroir. Armagnac is way south of the Cognac region. "And as far as he is concerned, if it doesn't come from Bas-Armagnac, it's not really Armagnac. "If you want more character, more guts, more terroir, you are an Armagnac drinker. More refinement, more sophistication? A Cognac drinker." Says Johnnes, "Armagnac is a great alternative to Cognac." And Meeske favors it because, "Armagnac is really one of the least industrialized of all spirits. Because of the distillation process, it has a unique rustic character. An Armagnac drinker is an individual who likes very individual products, for example wine that has a definite sense of place." The three connoisseurs all agree that the time for Armagnac is after dinner as a digestif. And all agree that the traditional brandy snifter is the worst glass for Armagnac because the shape captures too much aroma. Solomon favors a 6-oz. white wine glass. Meeske likes a tulip-shaped 8-oz. wine glass, and Johnnes believes that a smaller glass with straight sides, such as a Sherry glass, is also appropriate. Their warning to the uninitiated: Buy cheap (and young), buy dear. "Start with something a little better than 3-star," says Johnnes. It's a waste of time and money to buy an Armagnac less than V.S.O.P. Solomon recommends a V.S.O.P. Larresingle or Sempé for beginners. Meeske suggests starting with a Laberdolive (Domaine d'Escoubes) V.S.O.P. And, he points out, you can always try a single pour of something really good at a restaurant or bar. "It's better to pay a little more and experience the developed product," he says. Solomon has a nice suggestion, linked to Armagnac's special vintages (which Cognacs lack): "Everyone should drink a wine or spirit on their birthday that is the same vintage year as the year they were born." (Of course, the younger you are when you begin this tradition, the better. A 1949 Armagnac can run $400, and a 1921 -- half bottle -- will set you back $750.) Many good V.S.O.P Armagnacs retail between $25 to $30. So you can make that investment and treat friends to a tasting of two or three. Some -- but by no means all -- brands to trust: Bas-Armagnac Samalens, Bas-Armagnac Darroze (a firm that specializes in single-estate Armagnacs and sells under the name of individual domaines), Jean Danflou Armagnacs, Brillat Savarin, Chabot, Marquis de Puseygur, Le Chevalier Gascon, La Croix de Salles, Cyrano, Andre Daguin, Janneau, Larresingle, Chateau de Malliac, Marquis de Caussade, Marquis de Montesquieu, Le Roy des Armagnacs, Sempé, Vignerons d'Armagnac. Sam's Wine & Spirits