Amongst the oldest Cognac houses around, the story of Gautier starts back in the 17th century. The Gautier family weren’t in the wine business, or even brokers, shippers, or merchants. They were foresters and owned a good amount of land in the Tronçais region. It was clear they took the business seriously as their family motto was “Du galt mer sui,” which translates to “I am the Lord of the forest.” The family had a great reputation for making quality barrels from their wood.
In 1644, Charles Gautier married Jacquette Brochet, a wine-maker’s daughter. At that time, Charles supposedly did own a few vineyards. After they were married, they moved to Aigre in Northeastern Charente in the Fin Bois region, where their headquarters still is today. Charles began to learn the art of wine making and cellaring. Not long after that, it’s assumed that they starting distilling the wine, as that new trend was starting to take hold all over the Charente. However, there is no official record or proof of making eau-de-vie at that time. But their grandson, Louis Gautier, took over in 1678 and there is record of him starting to sell Cognac by 1700. In 1755, the family obtained a royal warrant to produce Cognac and a founding charter was signed by King Louis XV himself. This document is still on display at their family home.
The Gautier family remained active over several generations until the death of Joseph Gautier in 1913. His daughter, Simone, had married a gentleman named Michel Hériard, a cousin of Joseph’s, and he assumed control of the company until 1942 when his son Gonzague took control. But something to mention is that in 1920, a co-op called Gemco was formed in the Charente. Over the next several years, some small brands joined the co-op including Gautier. Fast forward to 1970 and business started to change a bit for the co-op. Gemco was bought by the Berger Group and expanded their sales reach, especially within the French market. In 1995, Berger was then bought by the Bordeaux group Marie-Brizard (you might know of their famous liqueurs), who used to actually produce Cognac themselves. And finally, in 2006, Belvédère bought Marie-Brizard and Gautier was turned into a subsidiary company with a fair amount of independence from the other brands.
A few intriguing things to note about Gautier is that Aigre was an interesting location to be based out of. Granted, it was on the outskirts of the Cognac AOC and far from the city of Cognac where everything was happening, but it was also right by the royal highway that led to Paris. If you were to send your products through Aigre and travel by land, the taxes were significantly less than using the river or sea for transport. In 1804, there were four brandy merchants based out of Aigre as compared to six in Cognac itself. Gautier eventually bought out all of the Aigre merchants.
Also, Gautier’s cellars are uniquely located in an 18th century water mill on an island in the river Osme. The result is that the cellars have a natural humidity of 80%, which provides ideal maturing conditions. This unique element lets the Cognacs age in a harmonious way and gain exceptional mellowness, roundness and complexity, especially in their older offerings. This is definitely a unique trait of their house.
Gautier doesn’t own vineyards anymore, but they do own a few distilleries. They buy eau-de-vie from every cru except Bois Ordinaire. Everything is aged in their humid cellars on the river Osme. Every new make eau-de-vie is aged in brand new barrels for several months before being transferred to very old casks. The style of Gautier is not to have too many tannins in the final product.
