Xavier Flouret

CEO Cognac One, LLC
Born and raised in Cognac, France, Xavier Flouret lived in the United Kingdom and Chile before settling in New York, nearly 15 years ago. Prior to founding Cognac One, Flouret was an owner of AMC USA, one of the largest wine shippers in the world. In this capacity, Flouret developed relationships with key players in all areas of the fine wine trade.

Drawing on his extensive knowledge of wine and his relationships with vineyards and wholesalers worldwide, Flouret founded his own importing company, Cognac One LLC, in 2007.

Thanks to Flouret's distinguished international reputation, Cognac One was named the exclusive U.S. importer of Champagne Ayala, the French house founded in 1860 and acquired by Bollinger in 2005. Under Flouret's stewardship, Ayala has gained steady distribution and a growing reputation on the East Coast and has just landed at the Bubble Lounge in San Francisco.

Closer to his heart is Flouret's recent launch of Xavier Flouret Wines, the eponymously named brand of fine boutique wines from France, Spain, Argentina and other outstanding wine-producing countries. There are currently a dozen Xavier Flouret Wines available with a total of 24 planned. Xavier Flouret Wines is a carefully curated collection of some of the world's finest boutique vintages, including whites, rosés and reds.

Flouret personally conducts a vigorous selection process, choosing only expertly made, wines that highlight their terroir for his premium portfolio. Xavier Flouret Wines offer both new consumers and seasoned connoisseurs a concise and fool-proof portfolio of new varietals and regions.

Xavier Flouret Wines's meticulously designed labels - a recognizable "X" marks the spot on the front and information about the vineyard and wine maker on the back - were the only ones to win a "Double Gold Medal" for label design at the 2008 San Francisco Wine Competition. The wines also received several silver medals at the S.F. Wine Competition, as well as ratings of over 90 points from Wine & Spirits Magazine.