Maurice Hennessy will have you know that he’s no nepo baby. Contrary to popular belief, his famous family name carries many responsibilities. Without a genuine interest and passion, one would not be considered for the business. “It is a privilege that must be earned,” according to the eighth-generation heir who was recently in Singapore.
Founded in 1765 by Richard Hennessy, an Irish Jacobite military officer, the eponymous brand produces approximately 50 million bottles of cognac annually. It now belongs to LVMH, which also owns Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, and Tiffany & Co.
Born in Neuilly, a suburb of Paris, in 1950, Maurice grew up in Cognac. His future career path was framed by agronomy engineering, which combined agricultural technologies with science, transcending the family name. After several internships, he landed a job with a distribution company that worked with wine, champagne, liqueur, and cognac producers, including Hennessy. “I worked in deliveries, filling orders, and going around with salespeople. I fell in love with the job.
The Hennessy management heard about that and invited me to join the family business. That was how it started.” “That” was in 1975, following his father’s passing, he transitioned from distribution to being appointed Global Brand Ambassador for Hennessy. Though retired, he continues to grow grapes for Hennessy’s renowned cognacs and remains a guardian of its history and legacy.
He takes particular pride in the fact that one in every two bottles of cognac sold worldwide bears the Hennessy name. Sustainability is a responsibility he takes seriously, knowing that Hennessy’s craftsmanship begins with nature. He warns that the repeated use of chemical fertilisers, treatments, and herbicides weakens the soil’s ability to regenerate, while declining biodiversity threatens the quality of grapes essential for Hennessy cognac.
“We must be the avant-garde of sustainability in all fields—the benchmark for our partners and the industry at large,” he asserts. “With 4,000 winegrowers in the Cognac Appellation and over 1,000 distillers and indirect suppliers, our impact is far-reaching.”
Over the past decade, Hennessy has invested heavily in soil conservation, reducing chemical inputs, and preserving land and biodiversity. In 2020, it launched 1,000 Palisses, a name given to its hedgerows in Charente, France. As part of the company’s Living Landscapes vision for the future, it will plant 1,000km of hedgerows by 2030 throughout its vineyards and those of its partners to create corridors for biodiversity.
“After four years, we are on track to reach this objective. We have strict environmental certification and, through financial efforts, we encourage our viticulture partners to do the same. By 2028, we hope to have all of our growers certified as High Environmental
Value.” High Environmental Value is a French certification for farms that practise environmentally friendly farming.
Since 2020, Hennessy has also replanted 50,000ha of forests worldwide, roughly 70 percent of Singapore’s land area. The initiative is part of its partnership with Reforest’Action, an international non-profit organisation dedicated to restoring terrestrial ecosystems, including reforestation and agroforestry, on a large scale to meet environmental challenges.
As the conversation turned to the future, Maurice remained optimistic. “I see new markets opening in Africa and Asia, while other mature markets continue to grow. Some, like China and the US, are suffering now, but the brand has been established in these regions for more than 150 years and is rooted in local culture.”
The Hennessy Kinetic Spring Garden at Ion Orchard hosted Lunar New Year celebrations, along with Crafted, an immersive travelling exhibition by Hennessy. Among its highlights was a limited-edition collection developed with Chinese fashion designer Shuting Qiu.
These combined traditional floral motifs with modern design on Hennessy’s iconic VSOP, XO, and Paradis cognac bottles. Qiu is the first female creative Hennessy has worked with. “She’s brought a feminine touch to our three emblematic expressions and illustrates that fine cognac can be enjoyed by everyone.”
Photo: Hennessy
