The Good & Great Cognac Houses – Bisquit

The house was established in Jarnac by one Alexandre Bisquit who at only 20 started trading in salt, one of the regions oldest staple products. He became mayor of Jarnac for a while in 1848 after the revolution and was a staunch Republican. His daughter married Adrien Debouché who added his name to the firm and their daughter married Maurice Laporte, a notable local figure who became a senator. Laporte was also active in the business increasing sales especially to China and the Far East.

The firm grew steadily until in 1965 the family sold the business to Paul Ricard, owner of Ricard Pastis. They were effectively negoçiant’s but this changed when they bought the Chateau de Lignères in the Fins Bois near Rouillac The estate with 200 hectares is quite large and M Ricard planted it all with vines. The company has grown under the influence of Ricard but the quantity of grapes it produces is only sufficient for about 18% of its total requirement. Later Paul Ricard moved the firms distillery and cellars from the historic site on the river next to Hine to Lignères where he built the biggest distillery in the region, a massive modern installation holding 64 stills. The new warehouse is equipped with vast stacks, each lodged in its own cell so that it can be easily moved by fork trucks. The premises are carefully insulated and the humidity controlled to ensure that the brandy matures at the same rate as it did when it was next to the Charente.

The earlier Biscquit brandies were designed to be more fruity than others, perhaps by allowing more of the secondes in at the final stage than other firms. More lately, the need for more brandy and faster sales has resulted in much greater blending with the inevitable results.