Open only by invite to Hennessy's closest celebrity friends and top buyers, we find out how the Chateau de Bagnolet continues to play an important role in the house of cognac's identity to this day
The first thing you learn about cognac is that it's made from eau-de-vie (which literally translates to 'water of life'). And it's easy to see why such an evocative term could originate from the sleepy town that gave the spirit its name, found in the bucolic heart of the Gallic countryside where the Charente river—the languid body of water that gives this fertile region its life and which King François I dubbed "the most beautiful river in the kingdom"—wends its way through.
Sitting on the riverbank at the apex of the Charente's northward bulge above the town of Cognac is the Chateau de Bagnolet, the former family estate of the Hennessy family and the ancestral home of the brand today. Despite the monumental proportions of the house of Hennessy, which in 2022 sold a staggering 94.3 million bottles of cognac, the chateau itself is a relatively modest, but nonetheless beautiful, structure. Built in 1810, its humble, two-storey form was inspired by the colonial estates of Louisiana, with a verandah that opens up onto seven acres of immaculately kept grounds and a white-washed exterior that gleams brilliantly amidst the picture-perfect verdancy of the Cognaçaise landscape.
Up until the 1970s, the chateau served as the private residence of the Hennessy family—a closed world of aristocratic luxury and witness to many an internecine squabble as the then-family-owned firm transitioned into a corporate entity with Moët, later merging with the Louis Vuitton behemoth—though today it serves as a sanctum to which the brand's most valued friends and customers are invited; a privileged glimpse into the very soul of the brand, if you will.
And so it was on one fine day in late July that I pulled into the gravelled approach of the chateau's driveway, walked through its doors, and was summarily ensconced in the lush world of Hennessy. Granted, the Chateau de Bagnolet isn't a chateau in the traditional sense of balustrades, quatrefoils and gabled roofs, yet you wouldn't know that after stepping inside: rich shades of burgundy adorn the walls, the furniture and carpets, reflecting the deep hue of cognac; while family portraits and studies of prominent Hennessys—including Auguste and wife Claudine Irene d’Anthes, who were responsible for building the chateau—watch visitors from various states of repose.
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But first, a sumptuous lunch on the verandah with Maurice Hennessy, the eight-generation descendant of founder Richard Hennessy, where we discover the inherent delight of service à la française, as white-gloved butlers present platter after silver platter laden with each course—there is bonito tartare with garden herb gazpacho, and grilled Cotinière sea bass with lemon butter and vegetable risotto—from which we pick our portion to pair with local wines, and later on, a dram of Hennessy XXO to cap off the formalities.
Then, into the town of Cognac we go: first, to the maison's archives where we pore over the Hennessy family tree and the original drawing of the family crest, as well as inspect Hennessy bottle designs of all shapes and sizes dating back to the 19th century. Fun fact: the Hennessy crest features the boar prominently as the belief goes that it is the only animal to defend itself by going on the attack.
We're soon told in hushed, reverent voices that we've been allowed access to Hennessy's Holy of Holies: the Grand Tasting Room, a white-washed, bottle-lined space no bigger than a large bedroom where the Tasting Committee, comprised of seven of the most gifted sets of noses and tongues in the business, convene every morning at precisely 11am—when the palate is at its most neutral—to taste dozens of eaux-de-vie hailing from the four grand crus of Cognac, in the process selecting the best samples to blend into the various expressions sold under the Hennessy name. To call these people the most powerful in the world of cognac is no understatement: their judgement calls decide what is poured into the 70 million bottles the brand sells in an average year.
Holding court over these sessions is master blender Renaud Fillioux de Gironde, who is the eighth generation to hold the title, in what has been a uniquely symbiotic relationship between the Fillioux and Hennessy clans dating back to the maison’s foundation in 1765.
“For me, I would say [my job is] almost easy because most of the hard work has been done by my ancestors. They've done the work in making the selection [of eaux-de-vie], and I'm the lucky one to blend it. At the same time, my role is to make sure that I'm preparing for the future.”
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