Maison Ferrand Distillery is best known for its Cognac. Due to strict regulations imposed by the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée, in a revelation that during the offseason, when they legally couldn’t distil Cognac, they realised they could distil gin! In 1995, the government finally relented, and in July 1996 at Château de Bonbonnet, Citadelle gin was born, with the aim of creating summer in a glass.
It’s named after the only Royal Distillery in the 18th century that was built in Dunkirk, which is also where the original recipe for Citadelle Gin was developed in 1771. In September 2017, the first Citadelle juniper tree was planted, and they are now growing juniper plants on the estate ensuring the gin can be wholly chateau-to-bottle.