Higher temperatures and light intensity trigger the sap to flow anew in the vine. The first buds emerge, covered with a downy coating called bourre, then swell and eventually flower. Bud-burst has arrived!
The year’s fruit-bearing canes are tied up by hand to regulate the growth of the vine.
The Champagne month by month
Louis Roederer Cristal Champagne was created in 1876 for Tsar Alexander II of Russia. Fearing assassination, the Tsar ordered that the bottle be made of clear glass (so he could detect any poison or “foreign bodies” lurking within), with a flat bottom to expose any bombs hidden in the punt.
Founded in 1757, Champagne Henri Abelé is one of the oldest Champagne Houses. In 1880 Henri Marie Joseph Louis Abelé (1852-1923) moved the business to the Rue de la Justice in Reims. In 1882, he played a part in the founding of the Syndicat du Commerce des Vins de Champagne (now the Union of Champagne Houses). The House relocated to 50 rue de la Sillery after the bombing of Reims in World War I and was acquired in 2019 by the Centre Vinicole–Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte.
The Champagne Houses
