Drink like a celeb! Raj Bhakta of Bhakta Spirits is reviving Armagnac with Bhakta 50, the oldest and rarest spirit in the world. Celebrity fans of Armagnac — who have earned the title of Armagnac Musketeers — include Leonardo DiCaprio and Stanley Tucci.
Armagnac musketeers is an honorary title for Armagnac connoisseurs.
“For several decades, the Company of Musketeers of Armagnac – a very select club without being a brotherhood – perpetuates with rigor, solemnity and conviviality the famous motto, ‘All for one and one for all,’ and promotes an art of living that ensues and that is firmly attached to the eau-de-vie that carries its name,” the company explains.
In addition to Dicaprio and Tucci, Prince Albert of Monaco, John Malkovitch and the King of Sweden are in the exclusive group, which is described as a “passionate community” that comes together for a yearly dinner called Chapter. The Chapter, set every September, inducts new members and gives the Musketeers a chance to meet “other Armagnac enthusiasts, fly the flag of the Musketeers and enjoy the typical way of life during a convivial dinner.”
Celebrities aren’t the only ones who can get their hands on Armagnac, the oldest spirit in France, however. Bhakta Spirits is on a mission to revive this spirit and get it in the hands of both connoisseurs and curious minds.
The Apprentice alum, for his part, describes the brand’s iconic Bhakta 50 as “history in a bottle,” with bottles varying from 50 to 150 years old.
“You’ve got literally the whole history of the world over the past 150 years tied up in these vintages,” he told Drinkhacker earlier this year. “So not only do you have history in a bottle, the miracle that these things made it through three German invasions, and that’s a miracle because an invading army, what do they first do? They go after the booze!”
If you’re already a fan of Bhakta 50, check out the latest release from Bhakta Spirits this summer: The Great Statesmen Collection. The collection commemorates the heads of state of France, England and the U.S. At $450 each, enthusiasts can choose between the “Washington” Barrel 28, “de Gaulle” Barrel 29 and “Thatcher” Barrel 31. Each is composed of eight unique Armagnac blends, allowing vintage spirit collectors an exclusive opportunity.
The Odyssey Set, on the other hand, is an accessible option for new Armagnac drinkers, featuring mini bottles to sample each of the three bottles at $99. Bhakta “created the set with the desire to put Armagnac back on the map” and “share the special qualities of this luxury blend – including its unique Islay Cask finish, which he believes greatly appeals to whiskey lovers,” the company tells Us.
The businessman also noted that Armagnac is “a bridge to the whiskey drinker,” explaining: “A deep age statement product is normally Scotched. So I said, for the Scotch drinker, let’s create a product that blows away anything that they’re accustomed to from an age standpoint and give it a little kiss of smoke.”
Exclusive bottles of Armagnac are available for purchase through http://www.bhaktaspirits.com/.
