REMY Cointreau’s Bruichladdich whisky and gin brands have “confirmed their positive momentum” in the three months to June 30, writes Scott Wright.

The Paris-listed drinks giant, which acquired the Islay-based business for £58 million in 2012, said the momentum behind the Bruichladdich business has been driven by sales of gin brand The Botanist. The update for Progressive Hebridean Distillers, the name under which the Bruichladdich operation trades, came as Remy posted sales of €240.2 million for its first quarter, a 9.9 per cent rise in reported terms and an uplift of eight per cent on an organic, like for like basis.

The company said the reported figures had benefited from favourable exchange rates and the acquisition of Domaines des Hautes Glaces, a distillery in the French Alps, and Westland, an American-style single malt distilled in Seattle. Both were brought into the Remy fold in January.

However, Remy said its first-quarter had been driven by a “remarkable performance” by House of Remy Martin, which saw sales rise 20.5 per cent, on a reported basis, to €156.6m. The Cognac benefited from “highly favourable trends in continental China”, where sales of luxury spirits have been staging a recovery after several years of decline. It also performed well in Macao, Hong Kong and Japan.