Delamain Cognac elected to French luxury group

Delamain Cognac has been elected to an exclusive club of French luxury brands called Comité Colbert, it was announced today.

Founded in 1954 by 14 members looking to restore the spirit for the “French Art of Living” and to bring together renowned artisans and artists with talents sharing “a certain French genius,” the Comité Colbert has chosen to add the Cognac house to the institution, taking the total number of wines and spirits at Colbert to 12, out of 107 members overall.

Delamain, which is owned by the Bollinger Group, will join the ‘big four’ Cognac houses in the Comité Colbert, which are Hennessy, Martell, Remy Martin and Courvoisier.

Delamain is the first Cognac producer outside these powerhouse producers to join the institution, as well as the first brand from Jarnac.

The other wines and spirits members of Comité Colbert are listed below, including the year they were admitted to the group:

• Bollinger (1965)
• Champagne Krug (1965)
• Charles Heidsick (2020)
• Chateau Cheval Blanc (1985)
• Chateau d’Yquem (1980)
• Château Lafite Rothschild (1989)
• Cognac Remy Martin (1986)
• Delamain Cognac (2021)
• Hennessy (2021)
• Maison Perrier Jouet (2007)
• Martell (2006)
• Veuve Clicquot (1985)

On average, about one member has been elected every year since the Comité Colbert was founded, with eight new members joining the group in the period 2015-2020.

Over the past 40 years, there have been six new members from the French wine and spirits sector, with the members of the Colbert Committee chosen on the basis of five criteria: “the international scope and reputation of the member’s brand, quality, creation, the poetry of the member’s creations, and its overall integrity.”

Charles Braastad, Delamain’s managing director and direct descendant of founder James Delamain, commented: “This is a very important day for the House of Delamain and a powerful recognition of our ‘excellence: only and always’ approach to crafting cognacs.”