Marnier Cognac

It was Jean-Baptiste Lapostolle who, in 1827, founded a fruit liqueur distillery in the town of Neauphe-le-Château. However, it was when his granddaughter married into the wine making Marnier family of Sancerre in 1867 that the Marnier-Lapostolle name was born, with the family having little idea as to the worldwide phenomenon their name was to become in the future.

The orange and cognac liqueur was first named Curaçao Marnier by its creator - Louis-Alexandre Marnier Lapostolle in 1880. But with the encouragement of his famous hotelier friend, César Ritz, this was soon changed to Grand Marnier. Bucking the trend of the time, he convinced Louis-Alexandre that such a grand liqueur deserved a ‘grand’ name. The drink was produced using a secret recipe, which is still followed to this day, and blends cognac with a rare Caribbean orange, the Citrus bigaradia.

It didn’t take long for Grand Marnier to become noticed, winning awards from 1900 onwards throughout the world. And it was in 1921 that Louis-Alexandre purchased the Château de Bourg-Charente in the region of Cognac. Since then, the company has become the fifth largest purchaser of cognac in the world, buying eaux-de-vie from nearly 200 separate producers in the region.

Today the house of Grand Marnier is headed by the sixth generation of the Marnier Lapostolles, namely by Jacques Marnier Lapostolle. Holding true to the traditions of those before him, Jacques continues to create products of style, quality and authenticity.

Now synonymous with cocktails around the world, Grand Marnier also graces royal tables, with a unique cuvée blend being presented to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of England in 2008 for her 80th birthday. This was created especially for her, using a blend of extremely rare and old cognacs, along with a double distilled orange essence and presented in a purple coloured bottle.

But of course, there are pure cognacs produced by the house as well. These encompass a range from VS through to XO, all carefully blended and created by cellar master, Patrick Raguenaud.

Marnier Lapostolle's cognacs are produced using grapes from throughout the cognac growing territory. Cognac Marnier VS is a blend of Bon Bois, Fin Bois, Borderies, Petite and Grande Champagne and can be purchased from around €25 per bottle. They also produce a VSOP, which is produced from the areas of both the Petite and Grande Champagne. The Cognac Marnier XO is purely from the region of Grande Champagne, and uses a blend of up to 30 older and rare cognacs.

Marnier also produce a Pineau des Charentes along with both white and red wines. 

They have produced a yearly limited edition Grand Marnier liqueur since 2003.

Visits to the Chateau de Bourg Charente are not possible. You can, however, have lunch at the Charente’s only Michelin-starred restaurant, La Ribaudière.