Gran Paradiso Brandy
2nd Release!
Wine Club Only
Only 300 bottles made (one barrel)
$100
WATCH THE VIDEO HERE
Our first spirit and almost a decade in the making! We are proud to introduce you to Gran Paradiso, a delicious handmade brandy aged in a Smith Devereux IBEX Single Vineyard Merlot Barrel. We made ths rare spirit in partnership with Napa Valley Distillery with the help of many other dear friends in our community. Here is the story...
After crush (the same process as wine) this brandy was distilled (not fermented like wine) and then placed in small barrels, used previously to age bourbon, for 6 years. These barrels imparted rich flavors of aged bourbon along with sweet, smokey notes from the toasted oak barrels.
6 years later, the brandy was carefully moved into a single, large, Prager Port barrel (based here in St. Helena) for 18 months, which added ribbons of the robust fruit and weight of a fortified wine.
Finally, we poured the brandy into one of our IBEX Single Vineyard Merlot barrels (we aged our 2017 IBEX in this barrel). The barrel itself soaked up a ton of flavor from the merlot, but we left a bit swishing around anyway, which mingled and aged together with the brandy for 18 months. This final touch not only makes this brandy completely unique, it added the rich spice, bold fruit, and beloved flavor of our prized IBEX merlot.
Since the IBEX mountain goat (for which the merlot vineyard and wine are named) comes from the Gran Paradiso Mountains of Italy, and this brandy comes from an IBEX Merlot Barrel, we thought it fitting to name the Brandy "Gran Paradiso". Full circle.
SERVE at room temperature, or over a cube of ice.
SAVE for as long as you like, it will age slowly and soften over time.
​MAKE a Brandy Cordial, Manhattan, Old Fashioned, or...