Rilly-la-Montagne grower founded 1890, known for oak-fermented, Chardonnay-rich Premier Cru cuvees of depth and texture such as Coeur de Cuvee.
Signature wines: vilmart-grand-cellier
Tip: Vilmart ferments in large oak casks, unusual for a Montagne de Reims grower.
Address: 5 rue des Gravieres, 51500 Rilly-la-Montagne, France, Champagne
Merfy grower with roots to 1683, led by Alexandre Chartogne toward terroir-driven, single-parcel Champagnes from the northern Massif de Saint-Thierry.
Tasting: Grower estate; visits by appointment in Merfy.
Signature wines: chartogne-taillet-cuvee-sainte-anne, chartogne-taillet-les-barres
Tip: Les Barres comes from ungrafted, own-rooted old Pinot Meunier vines.
Gueux micro-grower founded 1998 by Jerome Prevost, with a cult following for Meunier-dominant single-vineyard Champagne from the Les Beguines parcel.
Tasting: Tiny grower; visits by email appointment only, subject to availability.
Signature wines: la-closerie-les-beguines, la-closerie-fac-simile
Tip: Les Beguines is built almost entirely on old-vine Pinot Meunier, rare as a varietal cuvee.
Ecueil grower under Frederic Savart on the south Montagne de Reims, making precise, Pinot-led Premier Cru Champagnes from massale-selection vines.
Tasting: Small grower; visits by appointment in Ecueil.
Signature wines: savart-lopen
Tip: Savart works the prized pinot fin d'Ecueil, an old massale selection of Pinot Noir.
Ambonnay grower led by Benoit Marguet, farming Grand Cru vines biodynamically with horse ploughing, Demeter-certified, for vivid low-dosage Champagnes.
Tasting: Grower estate; visits by appointment in Ambonnay.
Signature wines: marguet-shaman
Tip: Marguet has ploughed its vineyards with horses since 2010, unusual in Champagne.
Merfy grower with roots to 1683, led by Alexandre Chartogne toward terroir-driven, single-parcel Champagnes from the northern Massif de Saint-Thierry.
Tasting: Grower estate; visits by appointment in Merfy.
Signature wines: chartogne-taillet-cuvee-sainte-anne, chartogne-taillet-les-barres
Tip: Les Barres comes from ungrafted, own-rooted old Pinot Meunier vines.
Congy grower founded 2003 by Olivier Collin in the Sezannais, making single-vineyard, lieu-dit Champagnes of texture and depth from reclaimed family vines.
Tasting: Small grower; no public tasting room, allocation through importers.
Signature wines: ulysse-collin-les-pierrieres
Tip: Les Pierrieres is a single-vineyard Blanc de Blancs from chalky Sezannais soils.
Celles-sur-Ource micro-grower founded 2000 by Cedric Bouchard in the Cote des Bar, bottling single-parcel, single-vintage, single-grape Champagnes with no dosage.
Tasting: Tiny grower; no public visits, allocation only.
Signature wines: roses-de-jeanne-val-vilaine
Tip: Each cuvee is one parcel, one grape and one vintage, with no added dosage.
Gueux micro-grower founded 1998 by Jerome Prevost, with a cult following for Meunier-dominant single-vineyard Champagne from the Les Beguines parcel.
Tasting: Tiny grower; visits by email appointment only, subject to availability.
Signature wines: la-closerie-les-beguines, la-closerie-fac-simile
Tip: Les Beguines is built almost entirely on old-vine Pinot Meunier, rare as a varietal cuvee.
Ecueil grower under Frederic Savart on the south Montagne de Reims, making precise, Pinot-led Premier Cru Champagnes from massale-selection vines.
Tasting: Small grower; visits by appointment in Ecueil.
Signature wines: savart-lopen
Tip: Savart works the prized pinot fin d'Ecueil, an old massale selection of Pinot Noir.
Ambonnay grower led by Benoit Marguet, farming Grand Cru vines biodynamically with horse ploughing, Demeter-certified, for vivid low-dosage Champagnes.
Tasting: Grower estate; visits by appointment in Ambonnay.
Signature wines: marguet-shaman
Tip: Marguet has ploughed its vineyards with horses since 2010, unusual in Champagne.
