Rémy feeds UK demand for luxury Cognac

Rémy Martin has used the official handover from cellar master Pierrette Trichet to her successor Baptiste Loiseau to preview a high end Cognac that is due to launch in the UK next month.

Positioned between the house’s top end Louis XIII and XO expressions, Centaure de Diamant was created by Trichet in 2010 and represents a selection of the top 10% of barrels from the house’s Fine Champagne Cognac stocks. Its name draws on the centaur design that forms the brand’s emblem.

Already available in France, Belgium and Russia, its arrival in the UK with an RRP of £800 is designed to support a growing appetite in this market for luxury Cognac.

“I needed this product in the UK,” Anne-Laure Pressat, UK brand ambassador for Rémy Martin, told the drinks business. “There’s a demand here for higher quality Cognac.”

The move comes in the wake of a major slump for Rémy Martin and its parent company Rémy Cointreau last year, which saw the brand’s sales plummet by 20.8% thanks largely to a slowdown in China’s luxury market.

Although the brand offers a total of around 30 different expressions or labels across its global markets, Centaure de Diamant will bring Rémy’s UK portfolio up to five alongside VSOP, Coeur de Cognac, XO “Excellence” and Louis XIII.

An official launch for Centaure de Diamant in the UK is due to take place at the end of this month, although the expression is available prior to this through an exclusive limited period deal with Harrods.