Unveiled to a select group of the French cognac house’s clients in China late last year, Martell’s Dame-Jeanne Collection of vintage eaux-de-vies are housed in custom-blown demi-johns nestled inside intricately woven willow sculptures.
Aged for decades in fine grain oak barrels and previously reserved for the French cognac house’s “exceptional” blends, Martell’s Dame-Jeanne Collection of eaux-de-vie have been transposed into dame-jeannes (or demi-johns) encased in a double-layer woven willow sculpture. The molds for the dame-jeannes, sculpted by a carpenter at the Martell Foundation in Cognac, were the starting point for the 11-liter bottles blown by glass artist Jean-Charles Miot. The willow sculpture is the work of contemporary basketry artisans L’Oseraie de L’ile. Each made-to-order piece is one of a kind.
Each of the Dame-Jeanne collection’s eaux-de-vie is selected by Martell cellar master Christophe Valtaud when it has reached its “full aromatic potential”. The Collection, which will be enriched in time, includes a single 1951 Grande Champagne — the vintage chosen for the house’s 300th anniversary blend in 2015 —, a 1958, also a Grande Champagne, and a 1971 from the Fins Bois terroir.
Dame JeanneJean-Charles Miot
BasketryL’Oseraie de L’ile
