Rémy Martin: A Deep Dive Into the Centaur of Fine Champagne
Rémy Martin, founded in 1724 by a young vine-grower of the same name, is one of the four large cognac houses (with Hennessy, Martell, and Courvoisier) and the only one to focus its entire production on cognac of the Cognac Fine Champagne designation — meaning at least 50% of the eaux-de-vie come from the Grande Champagne cru and the remainder from Petite Champagne, the two chalkiest and most highly regarded crus of Cognac. The house is owned by the Rémy Cointreau group, today the only one of the four large cognac houses still independent of LVMH, Diageo, or Pernod Ricard.
The centaur
The Rémy Martin centaur logo, registered in 1870, draws on the founder's Sagittarius astrological sign and has become one of the most recognised marks in spirits. The centaur appears, in varying period styles, on every Rémy Martin bottle.
Fine Champagne
The decision to bottle only Fine Champagne — taken in the early twentieth century — restricted the volume Rémy Martin could produce but elevated the house style: a more floral, more elegant, more chalk-driven cognac than the broader-sourced rivals. The XO and above expressions are 100% from the Grande Champagne cru.
Long ageing
Rémy Martin holds extensive eau-de-vie stocks across the small region between Cognac and Segonzac. The average age of the cognacs in its core expressions is significantly higher than the appellation minimum: VSOP (Fine Champagne) is typically aged around four to five years (vs. the four-year minimum), XO is typically twelve to fifteen years or more (vs. the ten-year minimum). The longer ageing changes the character substantially.
The range
Rémy Martin VS — recently renamed 1738 Royal Accord (named for the year Louis XV granted the brand a royal warrant) — sits at the entry. VSOP Fine Champagne is the workhorse; Club, XO, Carte Blanche, and Louis XIII (the prestige cuvée — see below) climb the range. The pricing structure tracks the dramatic increase in average age and in proportion of Grande Champagne.
Louis XIII
Louis XIII, presented in a hand-blown Baccarat crystal decanter, is a blend of around 1,200 different eaux-de-vie aged from 40 to over 100 years, all from the Grande Champagne cru. The bottle has been continuously produced since 1874 and is one of the few spirits genuinely treated as a luxury collectible in the same league as the rarest Bordeaux. A single bottle retails in the multi-thousand-euro range.
Visiting Rémy Martin
The house's headquarters in Cognac and its Maison Rémy Martin estate at Merpins host visitor experiences. The vineyards across the Charente department, with the small chalky outcrops that define Grande Champagne, are accessible to visitors who book extended estate experiences. The map shows the location relative to the other great cognac houses.