Hennessy V.S. Limited Edition By Faith XLVII (700 ml)

When Maurice Hennessy codified the VS star-rating system — later adopted across the entire cognac industry — he established a minimum of two years in Limousin oak as the entry point for the house founded on the Charente River in 1765. This limited edition pairs that institutional standard with artwork by South African muralist Faith XLVII, but the liquid inside is defined by production decisions, not packaging. Ugni Blanc grapes from over 1,500 partner growers across Grande Champagne's shallow clay-limestone chalk, Petite Champagne, the clay-flint soils of Borderies, and Fins Bois are fermented with native wild yeast for 5–7 days — no added sugar, no sulphur — yielding a base wine of just 8–10% ABV and high natural acidity, the structural prerequisite for double distillation in traditional alembic charentais copper pot stills. Hennessy's defining technical transgression: unlike Martell, it distills both with and without lees, and returns heads and tails to the brouillis before the second pass, concentrating congeners for a richer, darker spirit profile than the category norm at this tier. Initial maturation in new Limousin oak barrels — sourced from Hennessy's own forests where trees must reach 80+ years before felling — drives the VS's characteristic dark fruit and vanilla architecture. What separates this from every peer at the price: the Faith XLVII commission is one of a series of artist collaborations, making the bottle a collectible without altering the liquid, which remains the same assertive, full-bodied house blend assembled by the eighth generation of the Fillioux Master Blender lineage.