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 1812 André-Michel Pierlot moved to Tours-sur-Marne to start his own business. In the late 19th century, with no heir to succeed him, he transferred ownership to his cellar master Eugène Laurent, who died shortly afterwards. It was his widow Mathilde-Emilie Perrier who thought of linking their two family names to create the brand name Laurent Perrier. In 1939, Marie-Louise de Nonancourt, née Lanson, purchased the House for her son, Bernard – a larger-than-life personality who made Laurent-Perrier the success it is today.
The Champagne Houses