the enduring legacy of Louis XIII cognac

“En francais, we call ourselves les gardiens du temple – guardians of the temple. Because for me, I am responsible for preserving the style of the House.  To ensure that the people enjoying Louis XIII de Rémy-Martin today will be able to enjoy the same Louis XIII in the next year, the next decade and, hopefully, the next century.”

His name is Baptiste Loiseau and he is the fifth cellar master of Rémy-Martin. At 35, he is also the youngest cellar master in the history of the House, succeeding in 2013 Pierette Trichet, the House’s first female cellar master. As master blender, he is charge of the composition of the cognacs that bear the Rémy-Martin name, and in particular the delicate melange of some 1,200 eaux de vie that form Louis XIII, the most superlative of all cognacs.

Guarding that tradition is a formidable task and one that Loiseau is tackling with gusto. The Louis XIII that we drink today contains eaux de vie of between 40 to 100 years old, distilled perhaps when Einstein was formulating his theory of general relativity. Loiseau’s chief concern is thus that of continuity. He does not just concoct, his background in agriculture engineering impels him to work directly with farmers to ensure they, and thus the House, have the best possible eaux de vie today, and tomorrow.

“I am just a link in the chain. Without the best eau de vie, there is no Louis XIII. So my job, no, my responsibility to work with every other link in the chain to achieve the quality necessary. Because we do not just guard the temple; we preserve time. In 20, maybe 50 years or a hundred years, there may not be smartphones, or even Facebook. But there will always be Louis XIII. I must ensure that.”

Louis XIII de Remy-Martin