Canard-Duchéne is a champagne house from Ludes, Champagne. Founded in 1868 by Victor Canard and Leonie Duchéne, the house and vineyard sits within the Montagne du Reims National Park. The founders originally ran the house as a family oriented business with limited official supply engagements and modest profits. This worked very well for the house just after the French Revolution, where French folk took a disliking to brands that had been associated with Aristocracy. It also helped that Napoleon Bonaparte – leader of France shortly after the revolution – had a love for Champagne and drove ..read more

Canard-Duchéne is a champagne house from Ludes, Champagne. Founded in 1868 by Victor Canard and Leonie Duchéne, the house and vineyard sits within the Montagne du Reims National Park. The founders originally ran the house as a family oriented business with limited official supply engagements and modest profits. This worked very well for the house just after the French Revolution, where French folk took a disliking to brands that had been associated with Aristocracy. It also helped that Napoleon Bonaparte – leader of France shortly after the revolution – had a love for Champagne and drove ..read more

Champagne Lanson is the ninth largest house in Champagne, and certainly one of the richest in terms of history. Founded in 1760 by Francois Delamotte, the house became “Lanson” after the appointment of close family friend Jean-Baptiste Lanson to the helm of the company in the early 1800’s. Second-generation owner Nicolas-Louis Delamotte, who was a Knight of the Order of Malta, introduced the Maltese cross logo of the brand. In the early 1990’s, Lanson was purchased by Moet and Chandon. At that time, Lanson had a touch more than 200 hectares of vineyards. Just six months later, the house was on ..read more

Champagne Castelnau Brut Reserve is a cooperative made champagne whose “house” is based in Reims, Champagne. It is a brand under Castelnau Wine Agencies umbrella, a London, UK based worldwide wine distribution group. Despite being part of a large international entity, the wine in question is produced in Champagne within the rules of the appellation by Chef de Cave Elisabeth Sarcelet. She has access to 900 hectares of vines on 155 crus, and has crafted Castelnau’s mainstay champagne; the Brut Non-Vintage, from a composition of both Pinots and Chardonnay. Full assemblage details are not known, b ..read more

We are in the last throes of 2020 – what a year it’s been. In Australia, we are very fortunate to have ridden out the wave of COVID-19 to a place where (for now) we can spend time with family. And this is worth celebrating. Mindful of the fact that this year has been tough both mentally and financially for many of us; and also because the readership of my reviews of cheaper champagnes has far out-gunned the regular price bracket ones – I will highlight the best value/quality champagnes to put on the table for Christmas lunch. I know it seems I’ve had a quiet year – but I’ve still been sipping ..read more

“What is the best champagne for a Christmas gift?” It’s that time of the year again, the run into Christmas and New Years. Life is busy and you’re pretty much in need of a few drinks come December 25th for either the lunch table or to wrap up as a gift. Let me save you some time with this years Champagne Tipplers Cheat Sheet for the best bang-for-your-buck this festive season. For simplicity I have avoided the more specialised, hard to find offerings and focused on the brands you can score at your local bottle shop. Up to $40 For your budget dazzlers and mass-gifts; here are some of the best c ..read more

The fourth tasting tour that I did on my recent trip to Champagne was with the family owned Taittinger; another famous house based in Reims. The house has several properties; the Saint-Nicaise house in downtown Reims, as well as the Château de Lamarquetterie – the anchor estate located in Pierry. I visited Saint-Nicaise; Taittinger HQ. This building in particular is built over the remains of the Saint-Nicaise Abbey, a 13th century building that was torn down after the french revolution (it became state property and announced surplus to requirements). The legacy of the abbey however, was its i ..read more

The third tour on my recent trip to Champagne was with LVMH’s Ruinart; another esteemed house based in Reims. The oldest champagne house (others produced still wines first) was founded in 1729 by Nicolas Ruinart, after his uncle Dom Thierry Ruinart convinced the family that the bubbly wine was the future. Ruinart was also a pioneer of making champagne fashionable through commissioning artists for advertising, and it up-keeps this tradition by supporting arts inspired by its products and facilities. This connection forms a prominent feature in its tour. The actual Maison you visit is a re ..read more

My second tour on my recent trip to Champagne was with LVMH’s Veuve Clicquot; a world famous house in Reims. Founded in 1772 by Philippe Clicquot, the house’s proud widow (“Veuve” in french) that it is synonymous for is actually his daughter in law; Barbe-Nicole. She inherited the business on the untimely death of her husband during a period where most women could not maintain financial assets or run businesses – with widows being an exception to these laws. The maison is stylishly modern, with plenty of Pantone 137C yellow splashed about the place. There is plenty of the house’s marketing on ..read more

Recently I had my first trip to Reims, Champagne and it certainly won’t be my last! While there I made the most of my two and a half days and visited as many house tours as I could fit in. My first stop was Lanson. Founded in 1760, the house is situated across the canal from the centre of town in Courlancy, the house is an easy 15 minute tram trip and walk from the Reims Cathedral. When you arrive you are greeted by a large red brick house which fronts the entire Lanson facility. Inside, you are greeted by a team of welcoming staff and a lovely lounge area where you can peruse the whole champa ..read more