Jas Hennessy & Cie., commonly known simply as Hennessy, is a French producer of cognac, founded in 1765 by Richard Hennessy which has its headquarters in Cognac, France.
It is one of the best-known cognac houses,[1] along with Martell, Courvoisier, and Rémy Martin, who together make around 45% of the world's cognac.[2] Hennessy sells approximately 102 million bottles of its cognacs per year,[3] making it the world's largest cognac producer, and in 2017 its sales represented around 60% of the US cognac market.[4] As well as distilling cognac eaux-de-vie itself, the company also acts as a négociant.
The brand is owned by Moët Hennessy since a champagne & cognac merger in the early seventies, which is in turn owned by LVMH (66%) and Diageo (34%), with Diageo acting as a controlling shareholder.[5] Hennessy pioneered several industry-standard practices in the world of cognac, and its association with luxury has made it a regular point of reference in popular culture, especially in hip-hop.
History
The Hennessy cognac distillery was founded by Irish Jacobite military officer Richard Hennessy in 1765, who had served in the army of King Louis XV.[6][7] The Hennessy family's seat was Killavullen near Mallow, and was closely related in County Cork to the Nagle, Burke and Roche families. He retired to the commune of Cognac, and began distilling and exporting brandies, first to Britain and his native Ireland, closely followed by the United States.[7] In 1813 Richard Hennessy's son James Hennessy gave the company its trading name, Jas Hennessy & Co.[8] He was also responsible for choosing Jean Fillioux as the house's Master Blender. A member of the Fillioux family has occupied the role ever since, a business relationship that has lasted eight generations and more than 250 years.[9]
Marketing
Hennessy holds the largest collection of cognac eaux-de-vie in the world, with more than 470,000 casks in its cellars.[3] Through a process of blending and maturation of varying lengths, it makes several distinct gradings of cognac. As well as its V.S and V.S.O.P. gradings, which make up the majority of its sales, Hennessy is known for expensive specialist cognacs, some of which are still blended by the Fillioux family.[11]
Limited editions of Hennessy can contain more than one hundred different eaux-de-vie, some of which can be centuries old; they are traditionally accompanied with luxurious trimmings such as custom-made boxes and hand-blown carafes.[20] A bottle of Richard Hennessy, for example, is priced at around US$7,000, and comes in a Baccarat crystal decanter with matching glasses, a fusil, and a tray, all designed by the architect Daniel Libeskind.[21]
Since 2009, Hennessy has released a number of collectible editions to mark anniversaries, special occasions, or collaborations with artists, designers and organisations, such as the
Products
- Hennessy V.S
- Privilége V.S.O.P
- Hennessy X.O
- Hennessy X.X.O
- Hennessy Master Blender's selection
- Hennessy Paradis
- Richard Hennessy
- James Hennessy
- Hennessy Paradis Imperial
- Hennessy 8
- Hennessy Timeless
- Hennessy Ellipse
- Hennessy Black
- Hennessy Pure White (called Henny White in the US for legal reasons[27])
- Hennessy Classivm
- Hennessy Fine de Cognac
Collectors' bottles
In popular culture
Hennessy has a long-standing relationship with African American culture, especially hip-hop.[29] It has been described as "synonymous with rap music and African Americans, who are the brand's major consumers and advocates".[30] While music, especially the 2004 Tupac Shakur song "Hennessy" has been credited with popularising the drink, some historians have pointed to a much older relationship, which began when African American servicemen encountered cognac in France during World War I and World War II.[29]
Hennessy has actively pursued this consumer group for decades. It targeted minority audiences as early as the 1950s, when it placed advertisements in African American magazines like Ebony and Jet, used African American models, and hired African American employees.[30] By some estimates more than two thirds of Hennessy sold in the United States is consumed by African Americans.[31]
Hennessy Literary Awards
Hennessy sponsors the New Irish Writing competition in the Irish Independent, and the associated annual Hennessy Literary Award, that has launched such Irish writers as Joseph O'Connor, Dermot Bolger, Colm Ó Clúbhán, Patrick McCabe, Colum McCann, Frank McGuinness, Anne Enright, Hugo Hamilton, Dermot Healy and Neil Jordan.[59][60][61]
Notable consumers
Hennessy was the favourite drink of Kim Jong Il, former supreme leader of North Korea. Hennessy once reported that Kim spent over $700,000 a year on Paradis cognac.[62]
References
- Cognac makers look beyond China for growth Reuters, 2011-09-23, retrieved 2022-03-23^
- Cognac makers ramp up U.S. efforts as China sips less Reuters, 2015-11-22, retrieved 2022-03-23^
- Hennessy, high-end cognac - Wines & Spirits LVMH, June 2021, retrieved 2022-03-23