Jurancon is a wine region in South West France along the foothills of the Pyrenees. It produces a dry white wine and a more sought after sweet white wine. The grapes used are Gros Manseng, Petit Manseng and Courbu. The vines are grown on steep mountain slopes and for the sweet wines the grapes are often hand selected well into October and November to ensure the best noble rot characteristics. It has been said that the Parliament of Navarre was the first to introduce the concept of "vintage" in the 14th century in order to preserve the authenticity of Jurancon wine. In 1553, when Henri IV, the future "Henry the Great" was born, Jurançon wine became a part of French history: when the royal infant was christened, his lips were rubbed with a clove of garlic and moistened with a drop of Jurançon wine from which he derived a vigour and an ardent spirit which were never to leave him. It is with this spirit and courage that the proprietor of Domaine de Malarrode, Gaston Mansanne, a native of Bearn, continues his family's legacy in the vineyards of Jurancon. The vineyard was passed down to Gaston from his father, Jean Mansanne, who was orphaned at the age of 16 when he began learning the family business from his father. Today, with the know-how of his father before him, Gaston adapts the business with modern day practices and the love of working with vines to preserve one of the royal and ancient treasures of the wine world.