Hautvillers

Hautvillers is a commune in the Marne department in the Grand Est region, in the arrondissement of Épernay and within the Communauté de communes de la Grande Vallée de la Marne. It lies in the wine-growing region Champagne above the Marne valley. The municipal area extends from about 70 metres above sea level in the valley up to around 260 metres on the Hautvillers plateau.

Hautvillers is located on the eastern edge of the Tertiary formations of the Paris Basin. In the Marne valley there is chalk dating from the Campanian; in addition, clays, marls and sands of the Ypresian, chalky-sandy deposits of the Lutetian, as well as marls and limestones of the Bartonian are mapped.

The historic vineyard slopes of Hautvillers are part of the UNESCO World Heritage site “Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars”. The designated wine-growing area also includes historic vineyard huts and presses near the vineyards. The Abbey of Saint-Pierre was founded in 650 and developed particularly in the 17th century into a religious centre and a wine-growing centre. Dom Pierre Pérignon was there as a Benedictine monk and cellar master from 1668 to 1715; he managed the vineyards and cellars and further developed the blending of still wines from different grape varieties and locations.

Wines from Hautvillers may bear the name Champagne if they comply with the appellation rules. The appellation is reserved for white or rosé sparkling wines. Permitted are Arbane, Chardonnay, Meunier, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir; the three most important grape varieties are Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Meunier. For grapes from the commune, the supplementary designation “premier cru” is also permitted. The rows of vines may be no more than 1.50 metres apart; the distance between the vines within a row must be between 0.90 and 1.50 metres. Permitted training systems include, among others, Chablis, Cordon de Royat, Guyot and the Vallée-de-la-Marne training system, which is permitted only for Meunier.