Lillet Blanc - Grande Réserve - 2015 Harvest - 17%
Lillet is a wine-based aperitif produced in Podensac, in the Bordeaux region. The Lillet Frères company (liqueur makers and wine and spirits merchants) was founded in 1872. The idea of combining Bordeaux wines with exotic plants or fruits came from Father Kermann, a doctor who went to Brazil under Louis XVI and returned to settle in Bordeaux, where he produced liqueurs and fortifiers, mainly based on cinchona. In 1985, the Lillet family sold the company to Bruno Borie. Then, in 2008, it was sold to a subsidiary of the Pernod Ricard group.
Lillet is made from wines (85%) and fruit liqueurs and quinine (15%). Fruit liqueurs are obtained by macerating fruit peels such as sweet orange (from Morocco or Spain) and bitter orange (from Haiti or Peru) for several weeks in alcohol. It is aged traditionally in oak barrels .
Lillet Grande Réserve Blanc is a unique blend of wines from the same harvest and carefully selected fruit infusions. This vintage is aged in oak barrels for one year. This limited production can be stored for 15 to 20 years. Lillet Grande Réserve is best enjoyed chilled (between 8 and 10°C) as an aperitif, in a wine glass. It also pairs well with foie gras, white meat, blue cheese, or dark chocolate or fruit desserts.
" The Lillet Blanc Grande Réserve 2015 seduces with its intense aromatic richness, delicately blending sweet and bitter orange zest with the freshness of cinchona. Its oak barrel aging brings a warm depth and a beautiful roundness on the palate, with a slightly spicy finish. An elegant and complex aperitif."