Martell Reserve de Fondateur 1694-1753

In 1715, Jean Martell, a young merchant originally from Jersey, created his own trading business in Cognac, on the banks of the Charente, and thus founded one of the very first cognac houses. After his death in 1753, his widow and then his two sons and grandson continued this tradition and developed the export business to make Martell the number one in England in 1814. In 1831, Martell created his first “VSOP” (Very Superior Old Pale) cognac and continued its international expansion. Its fame spread throughout the world, with the first exports to Japan and other Asian markets, such as Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Korea. Cordon Bleu, created in 1912, is probably Martell’s most famous product. In 1987, Seagram took control of Martell for $1.2 billion. Since 2001 Martell is part of Pernod Ricard.