French Whisky
French whisky got its start only in 1987, and since then the country has grown to boast more than 40 different distilleries, located all over the country. Stylistically, France makes all manner of whisky styles, though it tends toward both blends and single malts, and wine cask aging and/or finishing are popular. French whiskies tend toward sweeter, fruitier, and lighter styles, driven perhaps by the country’s history as the primary producer of brandy.
Top French Whisky Posts:
Brenne Ten French Single Malt Whiskey
Vulson White Rhino Rye
Armorik Breton Single Malt French Whisky – Classic, Double Matured, Sherry Finish (2016)
Bastille 1789 Blended French Whisky
Our friends at La Maison & Velier recently dropped a new line of small-production, single vintage, single cask Armagnacs, all being sold under its new Version Francaise line. At the time, we mentioned that French whisky was also coming out under the Version Francaise label, and that is precisely where we’re headed today. While some…
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Coperies is a new brand from Cognac-maker Merlet, which says it leverages centuries of knowhow at creating brandy to create this pot-distilled single malt whisky. Made with French barley in the Charentes region and aged in French oak barrels, this whisky is as French as you can get. There’s no aging information, but let’s not…
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In late 2020, the Giraud family made its move from Cognac to whisky, dropping two expressions that proved that France can work with grains (almost) as well as it can with grapes. Now Alfred Giraud is back with a third French malt whisky expression, Voyage. Voyage is the first release in the Exploratory Blends Range,…
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The Giraud family has long been associated with Cognac, but fifth generation Alfred Giraud’s tastes seem to run more to barley than grapes. Late last year saw the launch of the man’s eponymous French Malt Whisky, which are both made from French barley, malted in France, and double distilled in the open flame-heated Charente copper…
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Maison Benjamin Kuentz is a brand of single malt whiskies — four, at present — produced at G. Rozelieures Distillery in Lorraine, France. They’re all young whiskies — but quite fresh and light on their feet. I haven’t been able to track down a ton of production information about the products — but I did…
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Brenne is perhaps the best known single malt whiskey made in France, unique thanks to its finishing in Cognac barrels. While regular Brenne doesn’t carry an age statement (it’s typically about 7 years old), Brenne Ten, obviously, does, spending a guaranteed 10 years in a combination of virgin French Limousin oak barrels and barrels previously used…
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Whiskey festivals come in all shapes and sizes, but WhiskyLIVE consistently produces a very approachable event for a fan at any stage in their whiskey obsession. There’s a good balance of offerings from industry heavy hitters and smaller craft outfits, as well as the occasional downright weird bottling. This year, I got to taste whiskey…
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Vulson is a white whiskey. It is also a rye. It is also French. That’s three categories I’ve never ticked off at the same time in our database before, and Vulson, produced by the western Alps-based farm of Domaine des Hautes Glaces, has more in store for us. Vulson uses organic rye that is grown on site…
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It’s been five years since we last checked in with Armorik, a single malt whisky producer in Brittany, France. Its lineup has been radically revamped and updated, with numerous new expressions hitting the market in the intervening years. The 80 proof expression we reviewed in 2011 is no longer produced under that name, but you can still…
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The 17th annual Whiskies of the World event wrapped this March in San Francisco, and it was as fun and chaotic as ever to wander three stories of the San Francisco Belle paddleboat, moored in the San Francisco Bay. This year I focused my attention primarily on independent bottlers of Scotch whiskies, with Alexander Murray…
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