Geographical area

By a law passed in 1927, the Champagne production zone (AOC vineyard area) is a defined area of 34,000 hectares. It is located in France some 150 kilometres to the east of Paris and spreads across 319 crus (villages or communes) in four main growing areas: the Montagne de Reims, the Vallée de la Marne, the Côte des Blancs and the Côte des Bar.
Together these comprise 281,000 plots of vines, each measuring roughly 12 ares (100 square metres). Seventeen villages rank as Grand Cru and 42 as Premier Cru. The vineyards are planted at altitudes of 90-300 metres, on predominantly south-, southeast- and east-facing slopes (coteaux) with an average gradient of 12% (up to 60% in some places). This undulating to moderately steep terrain creates ideal vineyard sites, combing optimum exposure to the sun with good natural drainage that prevents soil saturation.