1791. A young Englishman leaves Dorset to learn the secrets of cognac, his father's favourite drink. Thomas Hine is the sixth of twelve children and has just turned sixteen.
However, timing is not his strong point, since being in France at that time for an Englishman was not the most opportune thing!
Fleeing the French Revolution, he was imprisoned in the castle of Jarnac, where he remained for several months. His marriage to Françoise-Elisabeth, the daughter of his hosts, ensued. In 1817, Thomas Hine gave his name to this house, founded on the banks of the Charente in 1763.
From this dramatic beginning, six generations of the Hine family have succeeded each other at the helm of Thomas Hine & Co. The tasting rooms at 16 Quai de l'Orangerie have seen it all, from the Great French Wine Blight to local conflicts, world wars, early bottlings, international crashes, economic booms and busts, legendary floods... Today, a dedicated team of thirty people is committed to preserving and advancing 258 years of compelling history.
