Maurice Hennessy is in Omaha

Maurice Hennessy is on the move.

The eighth-generation direct descendant of Hennessy Cognac founder Richard Hennessy is in Omaha today. Hennessy lives in Cognac, France. Every so often, he visits high-profile buyers in the States. From 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. today, he plans to meet customers and sign bottles at Dailey's Package Liquor, 3113 N. 30th St. The liquor store will also host a tasting and sell discounted bottles of Hennessy. Information: 457-4411.

I spoke with Hennessy earlier this week about this trip. Here's what he had to say.

Q. You have quite a few cities you're visiting.

A. Yes, I'm in Chicago right now. I'll be in Omaha on Wednesday. I'll have lunch with customers, meet customers and have dinner with customers.

Q. Is this something you do on a regular basis?

A. I've never been to Omaha. It's a famous city. It has a beach named after it in France. Omaha Beach is one of the major beaches for the liberations of France at the end of World War II.

Q. Do you know much about the city of Omaha?

A. I know that you have Warren Buffett and he's a very famous man. And he has a son who is very famous. But no, I know nothing — that's why I'm going.

Q. Have you ever met Warren?

A. No, but he's someone you know about.

Q. Tell me about your customer base?

A. First of all, I'd like to tell them thank you for being supportive. Usually, they're very friendly people. They have great new ideas about Hennessy — sometimes things we couldn't dream about.

Q. I've noticed on Hollywood blogs and entertainment sites that you party with A-listers.

A. Yes, from time to time I do that.

Q. Is there anyone you haven't met already?

A. I recently met (singer) Common. The fact is these people are not at all what you think. They're very simple charming people. Most of them I get along very well with whether they would be rappers or rock singers. I do that in Moscow and China, too. You have all kinds of people who like Hennessy. Hennessy is just not any brand. It's a family brand. I'm the eighth generation and I'm very pleased to be doing this.

Q. Tell me about your background and how you incorporated this into your life.

A. There was a period where I didn't want to do anything with the cognac business. I was more interested in farming and raising cattle. But then by chance I managed to do an internship with a company in Paris and I discovered the wine and spirit industry is full of personalities. Several people like to hear about the industry, especially from someone who has lived in it their entire life. At the beginning I was visiting markets like the United Kingdom and Belgium. Then I started going to the U.S., Canada and Africa. Now I visit the whole world. Countries I would have never dreamed to go.

Q. What is your target demographic?

A. That's a big word, you know. I meet people who are just interested in Hennessy. Really, there is no class or color. It's everybody.

Q. Since you follow a lot of trends in the spirit world, it seems as though vodka is easier than cognac to mix into cocktails.

A. When cognac was created it was meant to replace wine. It was meant to be in the ships in the 17th century. Wine didn't travel very well during that time. So they used cognac and water. Still that habit carried on. Some people say cognac is only good after a big dinner, smoking cigars or while eating truffles or chocolate. That's great for the older qualities, but mixologists have been making great creations with cognac. I love speaking with mixologists to see what they're doing. We're launching Hennessy Black in a few U.S. markets. That seems to blend well with fruit juices. But it's all in the imaginations of the bartenders.

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