Hennessy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Jas Hennessy & Cie.

Founded	1765; 260 years ago (1765)
Founder	Richard Hennessy
Headquarters	Cognac, France
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Charles Delapalme, Chairman & CEO
Products	Cognac
Revenue	€2.12 billion (2022)
Owner	LVMH (66%) Diageo (34%)

Hennessy is a famous French company that makes a special kind of drink called cognac. It was started way back in 1765 by Richard Hennessy in a town called Cognac, France.

Hennessy is one of the most well-known cognac makers in the world. It sells about 102 million bottles of its cognacs every year. This makes it the largest producer of cognac globally. In 2017, Hennessy's sales made up about 60% of the cognac market in the United States.

The brand is part of a larger company called Moët Hennessy. This company is owned by LVMH (66%) and Diageo (34%). Hennessy has also helped create many standard practices used across the cognac industry today.

History of Hennessy

Richard Hennessy (1724–1800) started the company in 1765

The Hennessy cognac company was founded by Richard Hennessy in 1765. He was an Irish military officer who had served in the French army. After retiring, he moved to the Cognac region. There, he began making and selling brandies. His first customers were in Britain and Ireland, and soon after, the United States.

In 1813, Richard Hennessy's son, James Hennessy, gave the company its official name, Jas Hennessy & Co. He also chose Jean Fillioux to be the company's Master Blender. A member of the Fillioux family has held this important role ever since. This special business relationship has lasted for eight generations and over 250 years!

Becoming a World Leader

Hennessy became the world's top seller of brandy in the 1840s. It has kept this position ever since. By 1860, one out of every four bottles of cognac sold around the world was a Hennessy bottle.

Hennessy also introduced many ideas that are now common in the cognac industry. It was one of the first companies to sell cognac in bottles instead of large barrels. This helped the company survive a plant disease that affected grapes in the mid-1800s.

New Ways to Grade Cognac

Hennessy was also the first cognac house to use star ratings. They also created the special names V.S.O.P. and XO. Today, most other cognac makers use these same terms.

The V.S.O.P. name was first used in 1817. This happened when the Prince Regent of Britain (who later became King George IV) asked Hennessy to create a "very superior old pale" cognac.

Maurice Hennessy, Richard Hennessy's grandson, introduced a star-based system to classify cognac quality in 1865. This system was used as the main way to show cognac age until the 1960s. Maurice Hennessy also created the XO ("extra old") name in 1870. This was for cognacs that had been aged for a very long time in wooden barrels.

Growth and Partnerships

In 1944, Kilian Hennessy, a direct descendant of Richard Hennessy, started helping to run the business. Kilian Hennessy helped make Hennessy a global brand. He traveled to places like Ireland, the United States, and Asia to promote the company. He first visited China in 1946. China has since become the world's second-largest market for cognac.

Hennessy became a key part of large luxury companies. In 1971, Kilian Hennessy led the company to merge with Moët et Chandon. This created Moët Hennessy, which became a successful public company. In 1987, Moët Hennessy announced a merger with Louis Vuitton. This created the world's largest luxury brand company, Louis Vuitton • Moët-Hennessy, or LVMH.

Kilian Hennessy stayed on the company's advisory board until he passed away in 2010 at 103 years old. Today, Maurice-Richard Hennessy, an eighth-generation member of the Hennessy family, works as one of the brand's global ambassadors.

Marketing and Collaborations

Hennessy marketing on an off licence in Kingswood Estate, London, 2025

Hennessy has the largest collection of cognac eaux-de-vie (which are clear brandies) in the world. They have over 470,000 barrels in their cellars. By blending and aging these for different lengths of time, they create many different types of cognac.

Besides their popular V.S and V.S.O.P. types, Hennessy is also known for very expensive, special cognacs. Some of these are still blended by the Fillioux family.

Limited edition Hennessy bottles can contain more than one hundred different eaux-de-vie. Some of these can be hundreds of years old! These special bottles often come with fancy extras. For example, a bottle of Richard Hennessy costs around USD$7,000. It comes in a Baccarat crystal bottle with matching glasses, all designed by architect Daniel Libeskind.

Since 2009, Hennessy has released many collectible editions. These celebrate anniversaries, special events, or partnerships with artists, designers, and organizations like the NBA. They have worked with artists such as Zhang Enli, Les Twins, Refik Anadol, Kaws, and Marc Newson.

The rapper Nas has also worked as a brand ambassador for Hennessy.

Products

Hennessy Paradis

• Hennessy V.S
• Privilége V.S.O.P
• Hennessy X.O
• Hennessy X.X.O
• Hennessy Master Blender's selection
• Hennessy Paradis
• Richard Hennessy
• James Hennessy
• Hennessy Paradis Imperial
• Hennessy 8
• Hennessy Timeless
• Hennessy Ellipse
• Hennessy Black
• Hennessy Pure White (also known as Henny White in the US)
• Hennessy Classivm
• Hennessy Fine de Cognac

Collectors' Bottles

Hennessy Literary Awards

Hennessy helps sponsor a writing competition called New Irish Writing in the Irish Independent newspaper. They also support the yearly Hennessy Literary Award. This award has helped launch the careers of many Irish writers. Some of these include Joseph O'Connor, Dermot Bolger, Colm Ó Clúbhán, Patrick McCabe, Colum McCann, Frank McGuinness, Anne Enright, Hugo Hamilton, Dermot Healy, and Neil Jordan.

See also

In Spanish: Hennessy para niños