Hennessy XO

One of the big names of Cognac the story of the business started with Irishman Richard Hennessy who, after serving as a solider in the French army under Louis XV settled in the Cognac region and began distilling in the late 1700s. Riding a boom in the popularity of Cognac he quickly becoming successful and by the mid 1800s Hennessy's Cognacs were being exported throughout the world. In 1971 Hennessy first merged with Champagne House Möet et Chandon followed by, in 1987, a further merger with Louis Vuitton thus creating the luxury good group now known as LVMH. Maison Hennessy itself stands on the banks of the Charente river in the town of Cognac where their Cognacs are still made and aged in their extensive cellars.