Kilian decided to take up the torch of family tradition. Creating a new luxury brand was definitely a challenge worthy of his predecessors. His childhood haunts included the family cellars in Cognac. Before graduating from CELSA, he wrote a thesis on the semantics of scent, in search of a ‘language’ common to gods and mortals. Remembering the “angels’ share” as part of his heritage, he was led into the world of perfumery. The “angels’ share” is what the House of Hennessy calls the percentage that – inexplicably – evaporates from cognac cellars, like an offering to the gods. Many of Kilian’s fragrances today carry this childhood memory as they are reminiscent of the sugar in the alcohol and the wood of the cognac barrels.