SAB’S Spirits

50 years ago, every Burgundian commune had its own “moonshiner” who would set up an alembic in the village square in November–December, and all the winemakers would bring him their pomace to be distilled. Nowadays, no one does this anymore… Almost no one! Mathieu Sabague, a Burgundian by origin, passionate about the idea of bio spirits, is precisely reviving this tradition. Mathieu worked for a long time in the spirits trade. He lived abroad for 12 years, from Los Angeles to Casablanca, and rose to become an international director at the well‑known company Pernod. Then, in his own words, he swapped his business suit and shoes for Doc Martens, a work robe, and a cap. In 2018, he managed to take over the operation of Alambic Bourguignon (which, incidentally, was founded back in 1941) and bought a three‑copper‑pot alembic. The alembic is mounted on a wheeled trailer, allowing him to move between Meursault, Pommard, Gevrey and other communes and organise distillation festivals “à l’ancienne” (as in the old days). Top winemakers bring him their pomace for marc and their lees for fine. Mathieu carries out the distillation right on the spot. At the same time, he prepares potatoes, brisket or other such rustic food in the alembic for the onlookers. The marc and Fine de Bourgogne are then aged in Burgundian pièces (228 litres) for 7 to 9 years. Distillation of the other spirits takes place on the estate itself, in Beaune. The cellar for ageing is also there. In addition to the traditional Burgundian marc and fine, Mathieu makes eaux‑de‑vie from various fruits, also grown organically. Poire (William pear) from southern Burgundy is one of his softest distillates. The slightly sweet Abricot, made from apricots from Roussillon. Cassis, from blackcurrants from the Hautes‑Côtes, harvested in June–July. Pastis, the famous French anise liqueur, usually diluted with water and ice and drunk as an aperitif. The jewel of the collection is the Special Cask range. As you might guess, this refers to a finishing maturation of the eaux‑de‑vie in various special casks: barrels that previously held Rivesaltes, Pineau des Charentes, Cognac, Bourbon, etc. Typically, each of these expressions yields no more than 300 bottles. So, this is a great rarity for connoisseurs.