Champagne holds its breath until the Saints de Glace (Ice Saints) are safely past (11, 12, 13 May), dreading a spring freeze that might destroy the future harvest’s fruitful buds.
Desuckering removes the non-fruitful buds (suckers or gourmands). Any unwanted growth is removed to optimise sugar concentration and encourage good sap flow.
The Champagne month by monthIn World War I, the Champagne House cellars were repurposed as shelters for local civilians and military personnel. Makeshift schools, hospitals, chapels and sleeping quarters were set up – even the Reims City Council moved its headquarters there. So began a whole new underground way of life, safe from the bombs that rained down from above.
In 1858 widow Louise Pommery stepped into her dead husband’s shoes and came up with two brilliant ideas. The first was the construction of the neo-gothic, Elizabethan-style estate that is now the company Head Office. The second was the launch of the first Brut Champagne – hitherto all Champagne wines were sweet. The House is now part of the Vranken-Pommery Monopole group.
The Champagne Houses