Domaine des Forges was bought by Louis Vallein in 1791. In 1850, his grandson Georges Vallein set up a company for bottling and selling the estate’s cognac. He was not only the estate’s owner but also its distiller and bottler. As his son Paul never married, his nephew Louis Tercinier took over when he returned from WWI, developing the house’s renown abroad. After WWII, he was joined by his son Robert. Business flourished and the company began exporting to new markets in the 1980s. Since the 1990s, grape-growing work and bottling activities have been shared between his children Louis and Catherine. Today the house produces a comprehensive range of cognacs, including many highly sought-after vintage editions.

A Grande Fine Champagne Vieille Réserve cognac from Domaine des Forge distilled in 1836. It bears the name G. Vallein after Georges Vallein, the grandson of Louis Vallein and the man behind the creation of the company for selling the estate’’s cognacs and independent bottlings. The estate is still in the hands of his descendants, the Vallein-Tercinier family. The grapes used in its production were grown in Grande Champagne, the most prestigious cru in the appellation, known for producing cognac with incredible finesse.