1791. A young Englishman leaves Dorset to learn the secrets of cognac, his father's favorite drink. Thomas Hine is the sixth of twelve children and has just turned sixteen.
Timing, however, is not his strong point, since, at that moment, being in France for an Englishman was not the most opportune thing!
Fleeing the French Revolution, he is imprisoned in the castle of Jarnac, where he remains imprisoned for several months. This results in his marriage to Françoise-Elisabeth, the daughter of his hosts. In 1817, Thomas Hine gives 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 one another 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 conflicts, early bottlings, international crashes, economic booms and busts, legendary floods... Today, a dedicated team of thirty people is committed to preserving and carrying on 258 years of compelling history.