Category: Famous Cognac Houses

We have had this fabulous 150 -200 year old bonbonne for decades; it was given to us by The Comtesse de Bordelaise.  She is a direct descendant of the last French Royalty, King Louis VII and Eleanor of Aquitaine and has direct links with the British Royal Family.  Although frail, she still lives on the remains of the Massougnes Estate near Aigre. Once large and famous, the Massougnes estate has diminished considerably in size but over the years we have bought a few bottles of fabulous, historic and rare Massougnes cognacs from the Comtesse.  She shared some of their story… Read more

A single cru cognac, like those offered by Hermitage Cognac, elevates the art of cognac making. While many high-end cognacs boast of fancy presentations and limited editions, the focus often shifts away from the liquid within. Hermitage, on the other hand, offers cognacs sourced from single estates in single crus.  While most hail from Grande Champagne, exceptions from Petite Champagne and Borderies offer a diverse range of profiles.  Each has either an age statement describing how many years it has spent in the barrel or is a vintage.  These vintage cognacs are found in one or two barrels, distilled in a… Read more

Richard Woodward writing in The Drinks Business last week, about Boutique Cognac Houses, names Hermitage Cognac as an independent bottler focused on the highest quality: “Cognac has close to 80,000 hectares of vineyard … cultivated by some 4,000 growers …  . Twenty years ago, there were 8,000 vignerons in Cognac, illustrating a growing professionalism as small landowners exit the industry. That picture of consolidation extends to brand owners, with Cognac’s “big four” – Hennessy, Martell, Rémy Martin and Courvoisier – accounting for more than 80% of global consumption. That leaves little space for smaller operations, but a number of boutique houses still… Read more

We were delighted to welcome Paddy Shave from Brightwells Auction House to our offices a few weeks ago.  He brought with him an imperial half gallon (2.27 litres) bottle of Massougnes 1802 Cognac which had passed through our hands almost thirty years ago.  We are fortunate to have acquired a number of these large bottles over the years from the owner of the Massougnes Estate, the Comtesse de la Bourdeliere, Marie-Antoinette Pintaurd des Allees – a direct descendant of Henry II and Eleanor of Acquitaine.  This particular bottle from 1802 in the Napoleonic era, was originally sold by us to… Read more

Hermitage Cognacs Thrilling to hear the International Wine & Spirits Competition announce their Brandy Producer of the Year 2021 this morning ….. “and the winner is Hermitage Cognacs”.  The ceremony can be watched here on  Instagram or on Facebook. What an amazing accolade especially as we are the first ever British-based cognac house to receive the award. Our cognacs had amazing success at the IWSC this year: A GOLD OUTSTANDING Medal and The Cognac Trophy was awarded to: Hermitage 50 Year Old Grande Champagne Cognac And GOLD Medals were awarded to: Hermitage 1952 Grande Champagne Cognac Hermitage 1955 Grande Champagne Cognac Hermitage Paradis 1890 Grande Champagne… Read more

The Rémy Cointreau Group has announced their acquisition of Maison de Cognac J.R. Brillet which is based at Graves Saint Amant in the Charente.  The Brillet Cognac sale includes 50 hectares of vineyards located in Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne, the Brillet cognacs and Belle de Brillet, a pear and cognac liqueur.   Good to see its ownership remain with a family owned French firm but the big houses often subsume new cognac stocks into huge generic blends where individual flavours are completely lost.  It has taken a year for this sale to be agreed and during that time the Remy Cointreau Group’s… Read more

Charles Braastad, Managing Director of Delamain, has issued this statement: “After over a century, we are very pleased to once again be cultivating vines. We originally abandoned the practice in 1910 upon the sale of our ‘Bois Clair’ property in Saint-Brice.  At the time it allowed us to focus on selection, blending and ageing of Grande Champagne Cognacs.  From 2019 the house of Delamain is re-committing to the very first moments in the lives of our Cognacs, to their birth and growth in the vineyards.”  There is considerable investment in terms of time and money required to produce cognac so this decision… Read more

Rémy Cointreau is in negotiations to buy Maison J.R.Brillet, a family-owned cognac business founded in the 17th century.  In addition to the company, the deal is thought to include the family’s vineyard estate and their stock of well-aged eaux de vie.  It is located in the village of Graves-Saint-Armant, on the border of Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne, the top cognac crus.  Announcing the planned takeover, Rémy Cointreau said that it will provide an ‘opportunity to integrate spirits with genuine development potential into its portfolio and to increase, over time, the value of an inventory of eaux-de-vie and vineyards of… Read more

It seems that we haven’t got enough variations on the theme of cognac as Courvoisier are extending their range of cask finished cognac drinks. Of course, any cognac which is produced outside the rules established over the last hundred or so years, cannot be called cognac.  However, consumers have come to recognise the big brand labels and happily buy what they believe to be cognac, when it has actually been finished in a cask that has held a different alcoholic beverage. Courvoisier, in their plight to obscure the taste of their cognac, have recently added a bourbon cask finish cognac… Read more

The whole cognac industry began with the little guy, tending his vines and creating outstanding eau-de-vie. Today these small cognac producers, often family run houses, struggle to remain in business, such is the competition they face from the ‘Big 4’.  These 4 companies are now so large that each has a brand ambassador, presumably to reflect their core values.  Interestingly, Hennessy, Courvoisier and Remy Martin have all chosen a trendy rap star, clearly trying to appeal to the younger market.  Martell, on the other hand, has gone for a more stylish, feminine image by choosing Diane Kruger.  But what about… Read more