Ace Of Spade

Armand de Brignac
Product typeChampagne
Produced byCattier
CountryFrance
WebsiteOfficial website

Armand de Brignac, colloquially known as the 'Ace of Spades' after its logo, is the name of the tête de cuvée[1]Champagne brand produced by Champagne Cattier and sold in opaque metallic bottles. The brand's first bottling, Armand de Brignac Brut Gold, is identifiable by its gold bottle with French pewter Ace of Spades labels.[2][3]

The Armand de Brignac champagnes are produced in a multi-vintage style (like Krug's Grande Cuvée), and the Brut Gold cuvée is a blend of the grape varietiesPinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay.[4] Two other cuvées, a Rosé and a Blanc de Blancs (100% Chardonnay), were released in 2008.[5] In 2015, a Demi Sec and a Blanc de Noirs (100% Pinot Noir) also joined the range.[2][6]

The Ace of Spades (also known as the Spadille and Death Card) is traditionally the highest and most valued card in the deck of playing cards in English-speaking countries. The actual value of the card varies from game to game.

  1. Aug 15, 2020 - Explore John seearo's board 'Queen of Spades', followed by 450 people on Pinterest. See more ideas about Queen of spades, Queen of spades tattoo, Spade tattoo.
  2. Ace of Spades: Battle Builder is the first-person shooter that lets you create your battleground, destroy it, then create it again. Up to 32 players choose from seven unique classes and jump into team-based, multiplayer mayhem across an endlessly evolving.
  3. Ace of Spades is a sweet, tangy creation from the master breeder TGA Subcool, who crossed his Jack the Ripper with Black Cherry Soda to get a highly resinous indica-leaning strain. Carrying a taste and aroma of red fruits, lemon, and skunk, the plant may take on a violet or blue color during the late flowering stage.

History[edit]

At the turn of the twenty-first century, the Cattier family began to set aside parcels of reserve wines for a new ultra prestige Champagne project.[7] The first bottles of Armand de Brignac Brut Gold left the cellars in France in 2006.[7]

The original 'de Brignac' name was registered by the Cattier family in 'the late 1940s or early 50s', according to Jean-Jacques Cattier. It was chosen at that time by his mother, who had been reading a novel featuring a character named de Brignac.[7] Dormant for decades, the brand was revived for the new champagne after adding the name Armand. This was required by the French industry group Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne (CIVC) to avoid any confusion with the northwestern French village of Brignac, sitting just outside of the Champagne region itself.[8]In November 2014 it was announced that the champagne brand had been bought by a company led by Jay-Z.[9]

Champagnes[edit]

All champagnes in the portfolio are an assemblage of three vintages.There are five cuvées in the Armand de Brignac range:

Armand de Brignac Brut Gold is the flagship tête de cuvée from the 13th generation Montagne de Reims champagne growers, the Cattier family, the first bottles were released in 2006.[7] The assemblage typically comprises 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay, and 20% Pinot Meunier.[4]

Armand de Brignac Rosé was first introduced in 2008.[5] The color comes from the inclusion of 12% of still red wine, harvested from old vines that produce fruit with great flavor intensity.[4] The assemblage typically comprises 50% Pinot Noir, 40% Pinot Meunier, and 10% Chardonnay.[4]

Armand de Brignac Demi Sec was first released at the end of 2015. It is a sweeter style of champagne with just 34 g/L of sugar.[6] The assemblage typically comprises 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay, and 20% Pinot Meunier.

Armand de Brignac Blanc de Blancs is a single varietal champagne comprising 100% Chardonnay. Fruit is sourced from traditional Chardonnay territory, the Côte des Blancs, as well from Montagne de Reims.[4] The first bottles were released in 2008.[5]

Armand de Brignac Blanc de Noirs is the rarest cuvée in the Armand de Brignac range, with fewer than 3,000 bottles created for each assemblage.[10] It is a 100% Pinot Noir made with fruit from some of the best Pinot Noir growing villages in the region including Verzenay and Chigy les Roses.[2][10] The first bottles were for sale exclusively at Harrods in November 2015.[11]

Winemaking[edit]

Father and son Armand de Brignac winemakers Jean-Jacques and Alexandre Cattier

The Champagne Cattier team who produce Armand de Brignac is led by Jean-Jacques and Alexandre Cattier, 12th and 13th generation champagne growers. A team of 18 people touch a bottle of Armand de Brignac from pressing the fruit to when the bottles leave the cellars in France.[12]

Ace Of Spades Destiny 2

Ace Of Spade

The Armand de Brignac champagnes are made in the village of Rilly-la-Montagne, in the Montagne de Reims region of Champagne. Fruit is sourced from the 30+ hectares owned by the Cattier family and from growers in selected villages across the region.[13] All three Champagne grape varieties are used: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.[4]

After hand-picking, the fruit is pressed in one of two family-owned wineries located close to the vineyards.[14] The first press of 4,000 kilos of grapes provides an allowable yield of 20.5 hectolitres of juice (the 'cuvée') and Armand de Brignac selects just the very first and freshest portion of this press.[3][15]

Ace

The champagnes rest on lees in the cellars for years before disgorgement.[14] Armand de Brignac uses a unique dosage that comprises the best still wines aged for one year in French oak barrels.[14][15] These oak barrels are placed 30 ft underground and thought to give the champagne its complexity and life.[16]

Each metalized bottle is finished by hand, with the application of French pewter labels, polished, and housed in a wooden lacquered gift box, ensuring every single bottle is unique.[2] The annual yield for these bottles is roughly 60,000, which is considered fairly low in comparison to other named brands.[16]

Reception[edit]

In February 2009, Spanish critic José Peñín published his own review of Armand de Brignac Brut Gold.[17] In November 2009, FINE Champagne Magazine published the results of a blind tasting of 1,000 champagne brands, with Armand de Brignac the top finisher.[18]

In 2015, wine critic Jancis Robinson MW rated the new Blanc de Noirs and Demi Sec champagnes 18/20 points.[7] That same year, Armand de Brignac Blanc de Blancs received a Double Gold Medal in the San Francisco International Wine Competition.[19] Armand de Brignac Brut Gold was also awarded a Gold Medal at the 2015 San Francisco International Wine Competition.[19]

Ace

In 2016, Armand de Brignac Blanc de Noirs Assemblage One (A1) was awarded the #1 Blanc De Noirs in the World for 2016 by FINE Champagne Magazine.[20] In the same year, Wine Spectator rated Armand de Brignac Rosé 92 points and the Tasting Panel rated Armand de Brignac Brut Gold 93 points, and the Blanc de Blancs was awarded 94 points.[21]Decanter awarded 96 points to the new release Armand de Brignac Blanc de Noirs Assemblage Two (A2), 95 points for the Brut Gold and both the Rosé and Demi Sec cuvées were given 93 point ratings.[22]

In 2017, Armand de Brignac Brut Rosé was awarded Best Rosé Champagne in the World for 2017 by TastingBook.com.[23]

In popular culture[edit]

An appearance in Jay-Z's 2006 music video for 'Show Me What You Got' prior to the launch of the Armand de Brignac brand sparked wide discussion on sites covering hip-hop and popular culture, following his public fallout with the makers of Cristal.[24][25][26]

In June 2011 Mark Cuban spent $90,000 on a 15-litre bottle (10 magnum bottles) of Armand de Brignac in celebration of the Dallas Mavericks' NBA Championship.[27] A week later, the Boston Bruins purchased a 30-litre bottle of Armand de Brignac, dubbed the 'Midas', for $100,000. At the time of the purchase, the Midas bottle was one of six bottles released to date worldwide.[28] It is the largest bottle of Champagne available in the world and is only made by Armand de Brignac.[5]

References[edit]

  1. ^'tête de cuvée'. Oxford Dictionaries Online. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  2. ^ abcd'Celebrate New York Champagne Week With Two New Armand de Brignac Flavors'. Haute Living. 2015-11-13. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  3. ^ ab'Armand de Brignac'. Glass of Bubbly. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  4. ^ abcdef'Armand de Brignac - tasted! | Articles | JancisRobinson.com'. jancisrobinson.com. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  5. ^ abcd'Armand de Brignac |'. bestchampagne.fr. 2013-10-09. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  6. ^ ab'Armand de Brignac adds to Champagne range'. TheDrinksReport.com. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  7. ^ abcde'Champagne and sparkling wine - a compilation | Articles | JancisRobinson.com'(PDF). jancisrobinson.com. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2016-07-01. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  8. ^'Is the champagne in the Jay-z video for real? It's complicated.' Bloomberg Businessweek, Brand New Day, Burt Helm, October 25, 2006
  9. ^https://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/11/05/jay-z-acquires-luxury-champagne-brand-armand-de-brignac
  10. ^ abWilson, Chris (May 19, 2016). 'How JAY Z's Armand de Brignac Became the Gold Standard of Champagne'. Maxim.
  11. ^'Armand de Brignac launches Ace of Spades blanc de noirs-Telegraph'. Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  12. ^'The Top Drop', TheRake.com
  13. ^'Champagne Cattier'. Cattier Champagne. Archived from the original on 2011-10-10. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  14. ^ abc'Wine Spotlight: How Armand de Brignac Handcrafts Luxury Champagne'. Beverage Dynamics. 2016-03-15. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  15. ^ ab'Father's Day Gifts | The A-List'. alist.vanityfair.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  16. ^ ab'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2017-01-06. Retrieved 2017-01-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. ^PRWeb (September 24, 2009). Armand de Brignac Rated the World's #1 Champagne
  18. ^'Essi Avellan » FINE Champagne 100 Best Champagnes'. essiavellan.com. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  19. ^ ab'San Francisco International Wine Competition'. sfwinecomp.com. Archived from the original on 2016-08-12. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  20. ^Brignac, Champagne Armand de. 'Champagne Armand de Brignac Awarded #1 Blanc de Noirs in the World for 2016'. prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  21. ^'Blue Reviews EXTRA! April-May 2016 - The Tasting Panel Magazine'. tastingpanelmag.com. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  22. ^'How good is Jay Z's 'Ace of Spades' Champagne? - Decanter'. Decanter. 2016-11-24. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  23. ^'Not logged | Your personal wine professional | Tastingbook'. tastingbook.com. Retrieved 2018-03-09.
  24. ^hiphopgame.com Armand de BrignacArchived 2007-12-12 at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^prohiphop.com ProHipHop Coverage of Armand de Brignac ChampagneArchived January 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^Weston, Nicole, Luxist.com (October 17, 2006). 'Armand de Brignac Is the New Cristal'Archived 2017-09-01 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ^'Report: Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban spent $110K celebrating NBA title'. Fox Sports.
  28. ^Gary Dzen (June 19, 2011). 'Bruins go to Foxwoods, drink from a $100,000 bottle of champagne'. Boston.com. Retrieved June 20, 2011.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Armand de Brignac.
  • Official website
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Armand_de_Brignac&oldid=987145715'

Description : Ace of spades

In cartomancy, the ace of spades is quite a bad omen. Feared by the consultant, it is probably the most negative card of the game as it announces a great sorrow and sometimes a depression phase.

On the romantic level, the Ace of spades evokes a break-up through the end of a love story. In its most negative dimension, the card can also refer to death, if another spade card follows in the reading.

On the material level, the Ace of spades evokes losing money and poverty. The card is a reference to lay-off or to game loss.

It seems important to say that the Ace of spades should not be interpreted on its own and should be integrated with the other cards of the reading. Combined with certain heart cards, it represents success when facing an obstacle. The negative dimension of the Ace of spades can thus be avoided thanks to some specific cards, and can even bring a message of hope to the consultant.

Interpretation

The consultant

Be careful as the Ace of spades indicates a period of great despair. On the romantic level, you could soon have to face a break-up. On the material level, you could get poorer because of different raisons, such as being laid-off, losing money in a game or having to endure health problems. The Ace of spades evokes the most negative things in your life. Nevertheless, you have to see the bright side and observe the other cards from the picking/reading. Do not forget that in every situation, you will be able to choose your destiny. The Ace of spades is a warning.

Ace Of Spades Champagne

Spades

Ace Of Spades Blog

Entourage

One of your relatives is about to experience a difficult situation or to encounter danger. You have to be particularly present for your friends and family, in order to diminish the risks pending on them. Observe the other cards of the reading to understand the complexity of the situation. If heart cards are there, your relative will be able face the danger.