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The Champagne wine-growing region
The plots of land in each wine-growing commune are meticulously classified into numerous parcels. The vineyard as a whole does not form a single block but is divided into several zones of equal importance.
The area of wine production is strictly defined in accordance with the law of 22 July 1927 and accounts for approximately three per cent of the total area under vine in France.
The Montagne de Reims is a large, fairly flat plateau, thickly carpeted with vineyards that slope gently towards the valleys of the Vesle and the Ardre to the north and the Marne to the south.
The Marne Valley extends 100kms, from Saâcy-sur-Marne in the département of Seine-et-Marne to Tours-sur-Marne beyond Epernay. The vineyards line the flanks of the valley that slope more or less gently towards the banks of the river and nestle into smaller valleys on either side.
The Côte des Blancs, so-called because it is almost exclusively devoted to white grapes, is a cliff at right angles with the Montagne de Reims south of Epernay.
South of the département of the Marne, you can catch glimpses of vineyards to the north and south of Sézanne.
The area under vine in the region of Vitry-le-François, remains confined to a few communes only.
The Côte des Bar extend the wine-growing area to the south. Those around Villenauxe-la-Grande are in effect the continuation of the southern section of the Marne vineyard, but Montgueux in the immediate vicinity of Troyes also cultivates a few dozen hectares of vines. Mainly, however, they lie clustered around Bar-sur-Seine and Bar-sur-Aube plus a few dozen hectares of plantings to the east in the département of the Haute-Marne.