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 monthThe Avenue de Champagne in Epernay, formerly known as the Avenue de la Folie (“crazy avenue”), extends for nearly a kilometrer, lined on both sides by magnificent private dwellings lovingly constructed by the Champagne Houses, some as Head Offices, others as the private homes of proprietors. But the real glory of this avenue lies in the treasure trove of Champagne bottles beneath the surface – some 200 million bottles in all, slumbering quietly in the avenue’s 110 kilometre network of cellars.
In 1912 winegrower’s son Henri Lhopital decided to create his own Champagne House. In 1952 his own son André devised the brand name “J. de Telmont”, taking inspiration from a particular vineyard plot and adopting the motto, Nec Pluribus Impar (rarely matched). In 2020 André’s grandchildren sold their majority stake to Rémy Cointreau, marking that group’s comeback in Champagne.
The Champagne Houses