HOUSE OF RÉMY MARTIN
HOUSE OF RÉMY MARTIN BRANDS
The House of Rémy Martin produces a range of cognacs under the Rémy Martin and Louis XIII brands. These cognacs are made exclusively from eaux-de-vie sourced in Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne, the two leading
crus of the Cognac appellation, which offer the greatest ageing potential (more than 100 years, for some Grande Champagne eaux‑de‑vie).
The House of Rémy Martin is thus positioned in the high-end segment, with four flagship products :
- VSOP Fine Champagne ;
- The "intermediate" quality products 1738 Accord Royal and CLUB;
- XO Excellence Fine Champagne ;
- LOUIS XIII Grande Champagne.
COMPETITIVE POSITIONING
Four Cognac brands share around 85% of the world market by volume and nearly 90% by value (source: IWSR): Hennessy (LVMH), Martell (Pernod Ricard), Rémy Martin (Rémy Cointreau), and Courvoisier (Suntory). Rémy Martin’s market share of cognac shipments
for all qualities combined is 12% by volume (source: BNIC March 2020). Rémy Martin makes 99% of its shipments in the QS (Qualité Supérieure) segment, which accounts for 48% of the total cognac market (source: BNIC March 2020). In this superior
quality segment, Rémy Cointreau has a market share of 24% by volume (source: BNIC).
Global cognac shipments by quality (source : BNIC)
COGNAC APPELLATION D’ORIGINE CONTRÔLÉE AND « FINE CHAMPAGNE »
Cognac is an appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) brandy ( eaux-de-vie distilled from grapes) that comes from vineyards in the Cognac region (south-west France). The appellation covers
six crus: Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fins Bois, Bons Bois and Bois Ordinaires. "Fine Champagne", which refers to a cognac made exclusively from the first two crus, Grande Champagne (at least 50%) and Petite Champagne make up a
separate appellation d’origine contrôlée within the Cognac AOC.
Rémy Martin only selects its eaux-de-vie from the "Fine Champagne" (Grande Champagne and Petite Champagne) AOC, whose quality is best suited to the production of its superior quality cognacs with their longer ageing potential.
Cognac is a blend of eaux-de-vie of different vintages (after ageing in oak barrels). Accordingly, there are several quality levels classified in accordance with legal standards (BNIC) based on the youngest eau-de-vie used:
- VS ("Very Special"), which by law must be aged for a minimum of two years;
- QS (Qualité Supérieure), covering all the VSOP and QSS labels;
- VSOP ("Very Superior Old Pale"), which by law must be aged for a minimum of four years;
- QSS (Qualité Supérieure Supérieure), which by law must be aged for a minimum of ten years;
- XO ("Extra Old"), which is included in the QSS category.
