The Predominance & Leadership of Moët & Chandon Champagne
Updated: Apr 30, 2020
Moët & Chandon is one of the world's largest champagne producers and a prominent champagne house. Moët et Chandon was established in 1743 by Claude Moët, and today owns 1,190 hectares (2,900 acres) of vineyards, and annually produces approximately 28,000,000 bottles of champagne.
History
Moët et Chandon began as Moët et Cie (meaning "Moët & Co."), established by Épernay wine trader Claude Moët in 1743, and began shipping his wine from Champagne to Paris. The reign of King Louis XV coincided with increased demand for sparkling wine. Soon after its foundation, and after son Claude-Louis joined Moët et Cie, the winery's clientele included nobles and aristocrats.
In 1833, the company was renamed Moët et Chandon after Pierre-Gabriel Chandon de Briailles, Remy Moët's son-in-law, joined the company as a partner of Jean-Remy Moët, Claude Moët's grandson.
Following the introduction of the concept of a vintage champagne in 1840, Moët marketed its first vintage in 1842. Their best-selling brand, Brut Imperial, was introduced in the 1860s. Their best known label, Dom Perignon, is named for the Benedictine monk remembered in legend as the "Father of Champagne".
Moët & Chandon merged with Hennessy Cognac in 1971 and with Louis Vuitton in 1987 to become LVMH (Louis-Vuitton-Moët-Hennessy), the largest luxury group in the world, netting over 16 billion euros in fiscal 2004. Moët & Chandon holds a royal warrant as supplier of champagne to Queen Elizabeth II.
In 2006, Moët et Chandon Brut Impérial issued an extremely limited bottling of its champagne named "Be Fabulous", a special release of its original bottle with decorative Swarovski crystals, marking the elegance of Moët et Chandon.
production
Around 5 million bottles are produced in each vintage. The wine is 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot noir, with 6 g/l dosage. According to Tom Stevenson, "All vintages need at least 12 years ageing to nurture Dom Pérignon's signature silky mousse". As of 2008, the current release of Dom Pérignon is from the 2000 vintage and the current release of Dom Pérignon Rosé is from the 1998 vintage. As of 2017 the senior winemaker was Richard Geoffroy, who has been chef de cave for Dom Pérignon since 1990.
Domaine Chandon
In 1973, the then Moët-Hennessy company founded Domaine Chandon, an outpost winery in the Napa Valley. It was the first French-owned sparkling wine venture in the United States. The fine dining restaurant étoile was situated at the winery, closing in December 2014.
Chandon had already founded an outpost in Argentina in 1959, and was doing the same in the southern city of Garibaldi in Brazil in 1973. Domaine Chandon was later established in 1986 in Australia in Coldstream, Victoria, in the Ningxia region in China in 2013 and India's Nashik region in 2014.
Moët & Chandon is thrilled to announce the launch of a new advertising campaign that signals a new communication platform for the French champagne house whose 275-year-old heritage and pioneering vision have, since 1743, redefined the art of celebrating life’s most memorable moments. For more information visit moet.com.