Category: The History of Cognac

There seems little doubt that alcohol can, in moderation, be good for you. It has been said that drinking cognac provides a greater benefit than other alcohol and scientists tell us that it increases antioxidant levels. These are beneficial substances that keep harmful free radicals from damaging our cells. According to a study published in “Cardiovascular Ultrasound” in 2008, this sort of damage can increase the risk of clogged arteries, heart disease, cancer and vision loss. Drinking alcohol may also help limit the risk of Type 2 Diabetes but beware, excessive consumption can increase the risk of cancer, heart disease and… Read more

The Phylloxera louse decimated vineyards across Europe in the late 1800s by attacking the roots of the vines.  Many wine and cognac producers lost their livelihoods as a result.  Keeping vines Phylloxera free is therefore vital to the survival of the industry so this latest announcement from Melbourne University is extremely exciting.  Scientists are researching the effectiveness of sniffer dogs in detecting the existence of the louse in the initial stages.  Dogs already trained as ‘sniffers’ can easily be taught to detect other scents and it is hoped that this will extend to early stage Phylloxera at depths of up… Read more

An impossible question to answer, it is of course down to personal taste, but we do have a few facts to consider.  Cognac is made from grapes and whisky from grain so cognac can develop a variety of fruitful aromas and flavours which whisky cannot.  Both spirits are aged in barrels and improve over time but cognac is the more complex, takes longer to produce and inevitably, is more expensive.  Additionally, it is double distilled and must be made in accordance with strict regulations.  Whisky can be produced anywhere in the world but cognac must come from the designated Cognac… Read more

White Cognac from Coal The pressure on cognac houses in the early noughties to sell greater quantities inspired some to try and produce a white or clear cognac. Of course this should not be possible as cognac must be aged in oak and the wood always imparts some colour and most of all flavour. Consequently, when Hennessy introduced a ‘white’ cognac it still had some colour. So, one of the oldest cognac houses, Godet, produced a plan to solve this problem by filtering their cognac through coal. The plan worked and they launched Antarctica as a ‘white’ cognac.  However, Cognac… Read more

Cognacs produced before 1900 are very special indeed.  Extremely rare, each bottle has a unique history and flavour which can never be replicated.  Small quantities of cognac were aged in oak casks during this era and over the years, most of that stock has been consumed leaving very little in existence today.  The grapes and distillation methods used in the 19th century produced cognac with drier and more organic flavours.  These characteristics became unique to cognacs of the period as in 1871, the dreaded Phylloxera beetle killed off most of the vines.  It took years to replant with Phylloxera resistant… Read more

The end of World War II  was followed by approaching 30 years of growing prosperity. The newly formed BNIC started to improve the relationship between growers and merchants and was in turn lubricated. The biggest changes were in the structure of the biggest firms. In 1947 the relationship between Martell and Hennessey came to and end when they failed to renew their agreement. Martell remained independent, but in 1971 Hennessey merged with the champagne firm of Moët & Chandon. The big two became the big four through the growth of Courvoisier and Rémy Martin. The firm of Courvoisier was established… Read more

When we talk about cognac, little thought is given to what we are talking about, or indeed what the definitions of cognacs really are. The battle against imitation cognacs was largely settled by legislation in 1905 and reinforced in 1929 by the special Acquit Jaune d’Or, the gold coloured certificate of origin that accompanies every load of cognac on the highway. The Martell/Hennessey pact created both stability and unrest amongst the producers who were offered custom to maintain their business, but at the same time restricted in what they made and supplied. During the war a well known grower Pierre… Read more

The introduction of new vines from America created large financial problems for the brandy industry, since the cost of the vines was largely prohibitive, especially to the very small producers and they simply went out of business. This crisis was caused not just by the cost of new vines, but also by the dwindling stocks of old cognacs that could be sold. And the problems got worse. After World War 1 came prohibition in the United States, regulatory state monopolies in Canada and Scandinavia and crippling taxes in Britain. The outlook was so bad  that in 1922 Martell and Hennessey… Read more

The defeat of Napoleon in 1815 was a great relief to the Cognacais. In the following decades the town burst beyond its medieval walls and the new rich merchants such as Otard and Dupuy were able to show their wealth with large houses built in the woods around Cognac. Even so, Martell and Hennessy retained their pre-eminence and most crucially were able to set the process for which the growers would sell their brandies to the merchants. They formed hereditary relationships that were governed not by contract, but by the habit of regularly trading, which had become a style of… Read more

Heavy duties on brandies in Britain led to lively smuggling traffic throughout the century. In Rudyard Kiplings words, Brandy for the Parson (together with the other highly taxed item), Baccy for the clerk. In the late eighteenth century, Adam Smith concluded that smugglers were the biggest importers of French goods into Britain. By the end of the eighteenth century cognacs were being stored in oak casks for longer periods and the outbreak of war in 1756 actually helped the situation. The Market was big and every year 200,000 barriquess de vin propres à brûler, from which emerged 13,400 pipes, (each… Read more