Chardonnay's neutral taste also allows the terroir's flavor to shine through in the wine, making it a popular choice for many producers such as Krug’s Clos du Mesnil, Taittinger’s Comtes de Champagne ad Ruinart Blanc de Blancs. A custom planned private tour of the area is the perfect way to experience the beauty and unique flavors of this region. A full day itinerary might look like this departing from Reims train station or Epernay accommodation might look like this:

Visit 1 ▸ Vineyard Visit & Chardonnay Tastings
Drive through the four Grand Cru villages: Avize, Cramant, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, and Oger. On your way to your first visit and tasting at grand cru vineyard in the beautiful town of Vertu, Learn about the unique terroir, which contributes to the aromatic complexity of the Chardonnay grapes.


Visit 2 ▸  Immersive Artisanal Vineyard Visit & Lunch or Bistro
A The next stop is a family vineyard in Cramant for an immersive visit and paired lunch or a local bistros in Avizes.


Visit 3 ▸  Vineyard Visit & Comparison Chardonnay Tastings
After lunch visit another family vineyard visit ending with a triple Chardonnay comparison tasting, where you can taste the differences in terroir.


Visit 4 ▸  Chardonnay Comparison Tasting
Visit an artisanal vineyard, where you can enjoy a final a multi-tasting experience to discover Chardonnay's finesse.

Nicolas Feuillatte
Unlike other Nicolas Feuillatte sources its grapes from nearly 5,000 partner growers who collectively own over 2,100 hectares of vineyards. The grapes are carefully selected and then vinified separately by cru, by plot, and by grape varietal to ensure that only the best grapes are used in the final blends, and each cuvée has its own unique character and flavor profile.

Duval-Leroy
Duval-Leroy's first Premier Cru champagne, was created when the échelle des crus champagne ranking system was introduced. It is the first to produce a certified organic Brut champagne. In addition, their vat room was the first in the world to combine photovoltaic solar panels, a rainwater harvesting system, and a green wall for heat and sound insulation.

Salon
In 1905, Eugène-Aimé Salon created the first vintage of Champagne Salon. Only 37 vintages were produced throughout the 20th century made from a single hectare plot called "the Salon garden" and nineteen other small plots in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. The wines are aged for an average of ten years, to develop complexity and finesse.

After the Champagne riots in 1911, Champagne created the Échelle des Crus, a  percentile system, applying a set price for by a joint committee of growers and Houses for each harvest and based on an evaluation, quality and potential of the grapes from a village. Grand Cru villages received 100%, Premier crus 90 to 99% and everything else 80-89%. The labels indicate the region a wine was produced, but not always the grapes used. In the Cote de Blancs the Grand Cru villages include Avize, Chouilly, Cramant, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Oger, Oiry.

Chardonnay grapes are one of the world’s most widely-planted varieties. Chardonnay is the variety of finesse with floral marks. It develops quite slowly, which makes a good balance for wine maturation when blended. The Cote de Blancs covers an eastern-facing slope protected from strong westerly winds and is where the Chardonnay grape vines thrive on the region's chalky soil thanks to its high yield, and resistance to oxidation.