Moët & Chandon

From vineyards to celebration - sharing the magic of champagne with the world

Region: Montagne de Reims, Côte des Blancs, Vallée de la Marne, Aube and Sézanne
Annual production: approx. 62 million bottles
Size: 1000 hectares
Grapes: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier & Chardonnay

The history of Moët & Chandon dates back to 1743, when Claude Moët (1683-1760) began exporting wine from Champagne to Paris. In 1794, Jean-Remy Moët bought the Hautvillers monastery, where the monk Dom Pérignon had virtually invented Champagne. Moët soon began exporting its wine crates to other European countries and the United States.

In 1832, Moët added the name "Chandon" to the company name as he handed over half of the company to his son Victor Moët and his son-in-law Pierre-Gabriel Chandon de Briailles.

In 1969, Moët & Chandon took over the traditional champagne house Ruinart, and in 1971, the champagne producer Mercier, which was mainly active on the French market, was acquired. In the same year, the merger with the cognac producer Hennessy took place. In 1987, Moët Hennessy merged with Louis Vuitton to form the luxury goods group LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy). The partner brought the champagne house Veuve Clicquot into the company marriage. At the end of the 1990s, the small but exclusive champagne house Krug was also acquired.

Moët & Chandon is now the market leader in Champagne sales. In 2007, the LVMH Group's total sales amounted to 62.2 million bottles, 18% of total Champagne production, making it the undisputed market leader.

The Moët & Chandon wine estate has around 1000 hectares of vineyards. Around 50% of this is made up of Grand Crus and around 25% of Premier Crus. The vineyards are spread over around 200 wine-growing communes. These include 16 of 17 communes with Grand Cru status and 25 communes with Premier Cru status.

Moët & Chandon also owns the most extensive chalk cellars in Épernay. Its network stretches over some 110 km and has its own "street names". The oldest storage areas in this cellar date back to 1743, the year it was founded.

This was also the time of the Marquise de Pompadour, once mistress of King Louis XIV of France, and one of the most influential women of her time when it came to making champagne the favored wine in Europe's royal houses. Inspired by her love of Moët, she declared: "Champagne is the only wine in the world that makes every woman beautiful."

Our selection from Moët & Chandon