Born in 1874, LOUIS XIII was the vision of Paul-Émile Rémy Martin, the third generation to head the ancestral cognac house, which today still upholds the strong family ties and values of its origins.
When Paul-Émile’s son sought a successor in 1925, he turned to André Renaud, a trusted partner with whom he had been working for over 15 years. From the 1960s, André worked hand in hand with his son-in-law, André Hériard Dubreuil, to whom he entrusted the house legacy.
It was André Heriard Dubreuil who founded in 1965 what is known today as the Alliance Fine Champagne, a visionary partnership with local winegrowers, leaving the house an invaluable heritage that cemented its success. Still today, the Heriard Dubreuil family is the cornerstone of the legendary cognac house, the guardians of its values and history.
So as LOUIS XIII celebrates the iconic LOUIS XIII Legacy Limited Edition Magnum, we talk to Marie-Amélie Jacquet, fourth-generation member of the Hériard Dubreuil family, on what makes this drink so exceptional.
Was it always part of your plan to join the family business?
It was absolutely the opposite. I always said that I don’t want to join the family business; I want to do my own thing. In fact, I was an investment banker based in London. Funnily enough, my mother was exactly the same. She had her own job and even started her PR company when she was pregnant with me. She kept that going for about 10 years and after that, she relented and joined her father and her brothers, who had asked her for many years to join the family business. In my case, I changed my career path after I had a prolapsed disc when I was 30 and my doctors advised me to change my lifestyle.
I had always cared very much for Rémy Martin and Rémy Cointreau, and I wanted to prepare myself to carry on the legacy of our great brand. I know there will come a time in the future where our decisions will shape the company’s legacy and we need to prepare for that and there’s no better way to do that than by learning from the inside.
How has life changed for you since the career move?
Well, it’s a lot less stressful now! I did have a bit of apprehension in joining the company as a family member. At that time my mother was the chairwoman, so I did wonder if it would be a new dynamic altogether. But luckily, two of my cousins joined around the same time and it was so much easier than I had anticipated. And when I say it’s a family company, it’s not merely because the family is involved in the company but because Rémy Cointreau – the company – is actually a big family.
Could you tell us a bit more about what makes the LOUIS XIII Legacy Limited Edition Magnum so unique?
It is very special, not just because it’s a very limited release of only 500 decanters, but also because we had the privilege of bringing together our four last cellar-masters. Each of them had a great part to play in creating the drink that we have with us today. It takes decades – even generations – to make a product such as the LOUIS XIII Legacy Limited Edition Magnum.
How do you anticipate LOUIS XIII’s legacy to be in the future?
I think LOUIS XIII will remain the drink of choice for great celebrations. I think it’s a celebration of history because it takes so long to make. As a brand, we are also committed to thinking a century ahead. I think what sets us apart is our promise and commitment to make LOUIS XIII not just for foreseeable decades but for centuries.
