A Cognac Forged in History
The Moments That Made Us
Louis Gallois set up a wine and spirits company, Gallois Cellars, on the outskirts of Paris with his original business partner Emmanuel Courvoisier. Gallois had been developing contacts for many years, particularly with the upper échelons of Napoléon’s imperial army. These relationships proved successful many years later when Napoléon Bonaparte took the throne in 1804.
The Moments That Made Us
The sons of Emmanuel Courvoisier and Louis Gallois, Félix and Jules respectively, took over the company. In addition to their headquarters in Bercy, the partners settled a new company in the town of Jarnac. This new House, located in the heart of the Cognac region in France, was created to focus solely on cognac.
The Moments That Made Us
When Felix died without a male heir in 1866, he left the management of the business to two of his nephews, the Curlier brothers. The two negotiated good trade relations with the UK, where cognac was highly prized, and so made inroads onto the world’s stage, eventually gracing the tables of the Royal Courts of Denmark, England and Sweden in the 20th century.
The Moments That Made Us
When the Eiffel Tower opened in Paris during the World's Fair in 1889, it was an event of global significance. There
was much for Courvoisier to relish in during these events such as winning the ultimate international prize of its day, the Medaille d'Or. However, perhaps even more significant for the brand was the selection of Courvoisier to take a leading role in the dinner that marked the opening of the Eiffel Tower.
This was the social event to be at, to be seen at, and to take part in the toast by drinking Courvoisier, the official cognac chosen for this glittering occasion.
The Moments That Made Us
The Simon family from England assumed leadership of Courvoisier in 1909. They had been in the wine and spirits business in the UK for generations and saw its potential as a true global brand. The first thing they did was to build on our century-long reputation as one of the finest quality cognacs in the world by establishing the recognizable and iconic Napoléon silhouette.
Louis Renard developed the collection of Fins Bois that later exemplified the signature Courvoisier style of sophistication and refinement. Highly reputed as “the nose,” Renard is celebrated as the visionary blender who introduced the first core collection for the house: Napoleon (1909), VSOP (1910) and VS (1930s).
1909 was also the year when the registered Cognac production areas, or the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) were delineated.
The Moments That Made Us
What is cognac?
In 1936, the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac (BNIC) outlined the requirements for brandy to be considered "Cognac" which state: 1) The product must originate in the Cognac Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC). 2) The grapes used to make Cognac must come from one of the six designated growing areas or "crus" located in the Cognac region. 3) Cognac must also be made from grapes blended from 90% eau de vie from Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche and Colombard grapes with up to 10% Folignan, Jurancon blanc, Blanc Rame, Montils or Semillon grapes.
If a producer located in the Cognac AOC follows all BNIC standards, including meeting production, distillation and aging requirements, their brandy can officially be called “Cognac”.
The Moments That Made Us
At the height of the war, while Château Courvoisier was occupied by German officers, George Simon fled France for the UK. However, he continued to manage Courvoisier from England and, in order to ensure it didn’t fall into the wrong hands, 'sold' the business to Georges Hubert with the support of Christian Braastad with the promise they would give it back after the war. And, in 1945, the two made good on their promise and returned the Château to Simon.
The Moments That Made Us
Our Joséphine bottle allowed Courvoisier to be recognised on bars, shelves and tables simply by the distinctive bottle shape. The bottle was named Joséphine because it drew inspiration for its look from the well-rounded shape of Napoléon Bonaparte's first wife, reinforcing the historic association of Courvoisier and Napoléon.
The Moments That Made Us
We were honored with the 'Prestige de la France', the highest accolade for quality in France, and remain the only cognac house to hold such an award. This was presented by Jacques Chirac, who was mayor of Paris at the time but would later become President of France.
The Moments That Made Us
Our fifth Chief Blender, Jean-Marc Olivier, celebrated the turn of the Millennium by creating a fusion of historic and peerless vintages spanning generations of tradition. L'Esprit contains no cognacs younger than 1930, with many significantly older, from our famous Paradis cellar where we stock cognacs dating back to when Napoléon came to power after the French Revolution. As befits a cognac of such rarity, we housed it in hand cut, individually numbered Lalique® crystal decanters.
The Moments That Made Us
The last blend to be developed and launched by our fifth Chief Blender, Jean-Marc Olivier in conjunction with our sixth Chief Blender Patrice Pinet, L'Essence de Courvoisier is a sublime harmony of over 100 rare eaux-de-vie from the last 100 years, each championed as the most innovative of their time.
The Moments That Made Us
Courvoisier was awarded the Prestige de la France Award for the second time in its history.
A Word About Our Heritage
The Eras
1828-1866: Félix Courvoisier and Jules Gallois, the sons of the original merchants, established a new business in Jarnac focusing solely on Cognac, allowing them to have greater control of the process. Félix Courvoisier established the House in 1828 and built Maison Courvoisier as its proud soul place in 1857.
Courvoisier and Gallois were inspired by the refined architectural style of Paris and constructed their new maison as a tribute to their family's Parisian roots and ancestry. Theirs would be a House rooted in Jarnac but imbued with the flair of Paris.
1866-1909: When Courvoisier died without an heir, he left the House to his two nephews, Félix and Jules Curlier. It was the Curlier brothers who cemented Maison Courvoisier's reputation when it was awarded the much sought-after title of Official Supplier of the House of the Emperor, by Napoléon III in 1869.
With offices in both Paris and London, the Curlier brothers ensured that the House was at the center of the blossoming Belle Epoque period, celebrating the inauguration of the Eiffel Tower and the opening of Moulin Rouge in 1889 among others.
1909-1964: The Simon family, who were originally Maison Courvoisier's distributors, assumed ownership of Courvoisier in 1909.lt was under the leadership of the Simon Family that Maison Courvoisier's reputation grew further. Courvoisier cognac graced the tables of the Royal Courts of Denmark, England and Sweden.
1964-2021: Courvoisier’s story is entwined in 200 years of world history from Napoléon to present day. In the mid-20th Century, Courvoisier expanded into new territories, which resulted in Canadian company, Hiram Walker, acquiring it in 1964. Official recognition followed in 1983 when Courvoisier was the first cognac to be awarded the Prestige de la France.
Two further shifts of ownership followed, in both the USA and Asia. And in 2014, Beam Suntory became the owners of Courvoisier, opening this House to the world as a truly global brand.
