Patrick & Xavier Mogni

At the age of 18 Patrick already observed with interest a friend distilling Armagnac before moving on to practical work during the 1988 campaign: what was only a replacement quickly becomes an increasingly marked attraction and, two years later, he is hired by his neighbor who buys a second still to develop his clientele.

Patrick distills from estate to estate in the Landes and Gers and forges relationships of trust and friendships that still endure today. Attached as much to human relations as to the constant enrichment of the passing countryside, he set up on his own in 2002 following the retirement of his neighbor and bought a new still: a local Armagnac itinerant still, made a few kilometers from there (in Condom) by the SOFAC company and that it heats almost exclusively with wood.

The distillation campaigns then last on average two and a half months and Patrick is already making a good reputation, putting into practice what he learned from the elders while preparing the future generation: his son Xavier who has already accompanied him since he was little officially joined him in 2005. Fresh out of studies in viticulture and oenology, he developed the family cellar, the vinification of wines at the estate as well as sales. Distillation at the Mogni family is therefore combined in the plural, giving new life to a whole cultural tradition which may one day find its peak with the next generation, already represented by Augustin three and a half years old and Marie-Alexandrine seven months old.

Come the time of the campaign, Patrick and Xavier will work with around fifty customers, distilling an average of 600 hectoliters of pure alcohol, or 300 barrels. Here, as elsewhere, the distillation is non-stop: Patrick always sets up the still in the early morning and works until 2 p.m., replaced by his son Xavier who takes over until 2 a.m. and so on until the distillation is finished. Distilled mainly variety by variety, it is Baco which takes the lion's share, followed by Ugni Blanc and too rare and fragile historical grape varieties of which only Folle Blanche still manages to survive. They will stay as long as necessary, from one day to four days on the most important areas. As far back as Patrick has been distilling, he remembers that his customers often give him carte blanche and rely on his know-how to produce the finest eaux-de-vie. The dimension of his address book is up to the human relations that he has been prolonging for more than thirty years now and that he has shared for eighteen years with his son. The climax being all the festive moments that the majority of its customers bring to life around the still.

And when we ask him to tell us about the evolution of his profession, he remembers that the volumes distilled were greater than today with more properties and farmers, even if he has noted for a few years the return of a new clientele who are newly interested in Armagnac without being from the profession.

Without any chauvinism, Patrick will tell you that he distills the best alcohol in the world. He produces it himself on his family estate - the Domaine Duffau - in the small village of Sion where he takes care of a very varied activity in polyculture: in addition to 14ha of vineyard intended in part for the production of Armagnac, he raises cattle and grows corn, helped by his son of course, but also by his wife Viviane and his daughter-in-law Marie-Laetitia. Wishing to prolong this human and enriching experience that has motivated him since day one, he organizes "la Fête de l'Alambic" (the still festival) every year around many local producers and craftsmen. The opportunity to have a good time around the still and taste the first drops of Blanche which will launch the season...