The first Maxime Trijol still was installed in Saint-Martial-sur-Né in the Cognac heartland in 1859. Today, the distillery boasts twenty-two 2,500-litre stills. Maxime Trijol is different, in that the brand cultivates its own vines, as well as distilling and ageing Cognac. In this way, Maxime Trijol oversees all the steps in the cognac production process: growing the grapes, distillation, ageing and bottling. This philosophy of a continuous quest for excellence has been handed down from generation to generation.
In recent times the company has concentrated on releasing more of its own cognacs, which have been building a great reputation for quality. Jean-Jacques Trijol blends various ages to create batches, which are then combined to make differing qualities. For example, the vitality of a 10–15 year old batch is aided by the maturity of the 30–40 year old cognacs, and conversely, the older blends are refreshed with the younger blends to lift the palate and add a dash of zest.
THE GRADINGS: VS is the youngest and the letters stand for Very Special. (ageing is a minimum of 3 years). VSOP is next and the letters stand for Very Superior Old Pale. (ageing is a minimum of 5 years). XO can only be used in the eau-de-vie that has been aged for at least 10 years.