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 month
Every year on 22 January, Champagne celebrates the feast of St Vincent, patron saint of winegrowers. Fancy-dress parades, banquets, church services and traditional ceremonies are held to give thanks for the previous year’s harvest and to invoke the saint’s protection for activities in the coming year.
In 1820 the Chaudron family put down roots in the heart of the Grand Cru village of Verzenay on the Montagne de Reims – the beginning of an adventure that continues today under seventh-generation winegrower, Luc Chaudron.
The Champagne Houses
