Moet

Moet is the top selling Champagne in the world. It was founded in 1743 and served Louis XV and the royal court. Today the company holds a royal warrant from Queen Elizabeth II. Moet launched its first vintage in 1842 and their best-selling cuvée, Brut Imperial in the 1860s. Moet owns the largest vineyard area in Champagne and produces approximately 28 million bottles a year, stored in the largest cellars in the region covering 28 kilometres.

Billecart Salmon

Billecart Salmon is a prestige mid-size brand located in Mareuil sur Aÿ, where one can find some of the best plots of grapes in Champagne. The area combines the perfect conditions for the optimal growth of both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Pinot Meunier grapes are similar in color to pinot noir, with bluish-black skins and tight clusters. Its shoots often have a powdery white appearance due to the white hairs that grow along its surface. Unlike pinot noir, meunier is less susceptible to mildew. It is also far more resistant to grape diseases, most notably Eutypa dieback, than chardonnay.

Terroir

Pinot Meunier accounts for about 35% of the Champagne region's grapes. It is most prevalent in the Marne Valley, and the Aisne department. It's a robust grape variety, cold-weather resistance, well suited to the variable soils of the Marne Valley, and does not to have as significant ageing potential. The Petite Montagne & the Marne Valley are the best places to sample Pinot Meunier, and are mostly populated with Premier Cru villages, which includes Cumières, Damery, Hautvillers, Dizy, Mareuil sur Ay, Epernay, Pierry.

History

Epernay, dates back to the end of the first Iron Age. It has the second largest concentration of major Champagne houses including Moët & Chandon, De Castellane, Mercier, and Pol Roger located along the Ave. de Champagne and about 110 kilometres of underground cellars. Hautvillers is Premier Cru village with narrow streets and traditional forged-iron shop signs, overlooking vine-covered hills. The village calls itself “the cradle of Champagnes” based on the legend that Dom Perignon invented Champagne here. Dom Pierre Pérignon, arrived here in 1668 as cellarmaster and transformed wine development, vine management, blending, and quality control. On request we can stop here to see his gravestone in the Choir of the church. The Marne River was the site of many Battles that saved Paris. It became a focal point at the beginning and end of WW1 when the German goal was to defeat France early on in order to bring a quick close to the war. To reach Paris, they marched through Belgium and crossed the Marne River. They expected little resistance but were in for a shock.

Marne Valley Champagne Adventures

Departing from Paris or CDG airport by car, head east toward the magnificent statue of Urban II in Chatillon and panoramic view of the Marne Valley. En route we can stop at the WW1 cemeteries and monuments, one of the 500 small family wineries in Chateau Thierry or the small church where Dom Perignon is buried in the picturesque Premier Cru village of Hautvillers, often referred to as the “cradle of Champagnes”

Multi Region Journeys