The land

Champagne sits about 90 miles east-northeast of Paris, at roughly 49°N latitude — at the very edge of where grapes will reliably ripen. The bedrock is Cretaceous chalk (the same chalk that runs under southern England), which holds water, regulates temperature, and contributes the saline mineral spine that defines the wines. The region splits into five main zones: Montagne de Reims, Vallée de la Marne, Côte des Blancs, Côte de Sézanne, and the Aube.

The grapes and the method

Three grapes dominate: Chardonnay (mostly Côte des Blancs), Pinot Noir (Montagne de Reims, Aube), Pinot Meunier (Vallée de la Marne). The Méthode Champenoise involves a primary fermentation, blending of base wines, secondary fermentation in bottle to create the bubbles, extended aging on the lees (a minimum 15 months for non-vintage, 36 months for vintage), and finally disgorgement and dosage. The whole process takes a minimum of two years, and serious producers often go four to six or more.

Grower vs. house

For most of the 20th century, Champagne meant the big houses (Moët, Krug, Veuve, Roederer) who bought grapes from thousands of growers and blended them into branded cuvées. Starting in the 1980s, growers began bottling their own Champagne — wines from a single estate, a single village, sometimes a single vineyard. The grower-Champagne movement has changed the conversation entirely: terroir is now visible in the bottle in a way it wasn’t before.

Vintages to know

2012 is the most-awaited vintage of the decade — concentrated, balanced, age-worthy. 2008 was legendary, an outright classic. 2002 sits in the pantheon. Non-vintage Champagne, by definition, smooths out vintage variation. See the full ratings at /encyclopedia/vintage-chart/.

In the BWM cellar

Salon 2012 from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger is the marquee allocation — a Blanc de Blancs made in only the greatest vintages. Krug Vintage 2002 is in library territory. Egly-Ouriet, Pierre Péters, Larmandier-Bernier, Vilmart et Cie — these are our grower anchors, each working a specific village at a specific level. Browse the full Champagne hand at /regions/champagne/, and see specifically /champagne-grower-boulder/ for our take on grower Champagne.