A History of Champagne Ep. 3: Napoleon, Moët & How America Saved Champagne

In the 1730s, Claude Mouet was one of a small number of wine merchants who were accredited to the Royal Court of Versailles. Louis XV's official mistress, Madame de Pompadour, quickly became one of Mouet's loyal customers, and she made sure his champagne was served at every significant event at the palace. Then revolution hit Versailles in 1789, and before it was over, 50,000 people were beheaded, including Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. I have read they were served champagne with their last meals. Before the revolution, the tax system was that the royals and clergy were exempt from paying anything, while the commoners paid all the taxes. The peasant wine growers also had to tithe part of their crop to the church. Additionally, they were forbidden to sell their grapes until the clergy and nobles had sold theirs first. This was definitely not a good system. Abbeys were originally made exempt from paying taxes because they helped the poor, but in the end, not only the royals were targets by the revolutionary mobs, but also the monks and clergy. Church properties, including their vineyards, were nationalized and sold to help pay off France's debt, partially incurred from supporting the colonies in the American War of Independence. Prior to the French Revolution, the patronage of the royals helped put champagne on the map. Afterward, its popularity spread even further. Moët de Chandon was a big reason for this. You will soon learn why. Today, it is the largest producer of champagne, and its non-vintage, Brut Imperial, is the best-selling champagne in the world. We are in Epernay in this spectacular vineyard with Pascal Pecquereau, who is an ambassador for this incredible champagne house. It's absolutely, I mean, words don't begin to describe it. It's so breathtakingly beautiful, and I'm very honored to be here with you today. Can you tell us about the beginnings of your champagne house? Yes, of course. It started a long, long time ago, by the way. Champagne had just been invented at the end of the 17th century, and our founder, Claude Mette, started a wine business in 1717. He settled in the city of Epernay, just behind this hill, and the business really developed with his grandson, Jean-Rémy Moët. Jean-Rémy Moët left a huge imprint here, in this place, which is in Côte des Blancs. He purchased a large part of the land around here, and probably the development of the Maison, which became the leader in champagne at this time, was linked to the general history of France, and to the French Revolution, and to Napoleon I. Claude Moët had a relationship with Versailles. Yes, of course. Well, we don't have any written proof about it. But what we know for sure is that he had great clients. So, probably through his brother, who was an innkeeper in Paris, he got in contact with the official wine merchant supplying the court. And we know that in 1748, he was sending them Champagne pour le Roi, for the king. So, one of his first customers was Louis XV, Le Bien-Aimé, the king of France. But also, the king's favorite, the Marquise de Pompadour. The Marquise de Pompadour is a great woman. At a time when women were supposed just to stay at home, she was a lady, first, of great beauty, of great intelligence, of great culture. She protected artists, philosophers. For 20 years, she was a sort of a hidden prime minister. And she loved Mr. Moët's wine. We know it's actually her, but she ordered up to 300 bottles at a time. And we love her because she said, Champagne is the only wine that makes a woman even more beautiful after drinking it. Oh, that's lovely. And this is true. Yes. Yes, it is. And it is about Mr. Moët's wine, of course. Why do we see so many different sized plots of land? So, it's something which started at the time of Jérémie Moët, at the time of the French Revolution. Because during the French Revolution, a lot of estate belonging to the church and to the nobility was confiscated and sold. And to allow many people to have access to them, it was split into rather small plots of land. Just think, the whole of Champagne now, it's around 85,000 hectares, acres, 85,000 acres. And it is made of no less than 260,000 plots of land. Wow. And you can see this from here. But it is a great asset for us because when we make Champagne, we make a blend, by the way, of grapes coming from different villages, different grape varieties, different plots of lands, and even different churches. So, what seems to be a problem actually is a fantastic resource. How long does the harvest typically last? Well, usually, three weeks, two to three weeks. It's very long for two reasons. The first one is that it's done only by hand. So, we need a lot of people. From Moët et Chandon, for example, we need some 2,600 people. Wow. So, everybody is welcome in Saint-Amber. And by the way, it's very important for me because I met my wife a long time ago when we were picking the grapes together. Oh, that's beautiful. Oh, very nice. But there is also another reason for making it rather long, which is that all the grapes are not ripe at the same moment because of different grape varieties in different villages. And the official date for starting the harvest is spread sometimes on a period of 14 days. After, it's rather fast in one given village because the grapes have to be picked exactly when they are ripe. What makes a great vintage year? What kind of growing conditions? So, we must have in mind that, first of all, champagne is non-vintage. It's a blend of different years, different grapes, different origins. A vintage, which is just from one year, is a premium champagne. And then, yes, we need specific conditions. It's mostly what happens in summer. You see, until June, early July, it's much more a matter of the number of mudfishes which will be produced. After, the sun, the heat, will really give a different character to the year. Basically, we need not too much rain, or if you have rain, if you have rain, we need rain and then sun and then rain. And that's enough. We are not demanding. We just ask Mother Nature not to be too bad with us. And it's enough. It is really, really impressive to see the number of bottles down here. Was it like this during Jean-Remy Mouet's time? Nearly, because there's something very important about his time, which is that it was a moment when luxury ceased to be made of unique pieces, but it was a time of industrial development when it was possible to create luxury, perfect items in large quantities. And it is just at the time of Napoleon I that we had the first industrial exhibitions in France to show what French industry could do. And Jean-Remy Mouet understood this. But this meant that he had to give himself all the resources to make great champagne in large quantities for the time. This meant having large vineyards, but also having very large cellars, very long galleries dug out to age, to mature the wines. Napoleon and Jean-Remy had a wonderful friendship. Yes, it's a long story, because Napoleon came at least five times. And at the beginning he was not even emperor. He was still the first consul of France. And I think they really developed a mutual esteem and respect. This plaque is a very good example of this. It is a memory of one of Napoleon's visits, probably the most famous one, because it was in 1807. Maybe I can translate. Coming back from France after signing the treaty in Tircide, Napoleon the Great, emperor of the French, visited this cellar, led by Mr. Jean-Remy Mouet, on the 26th of July, 1807. And so it was not just making a stopover in Épernay, because it was a reconvenient on the way to the east. It was really having some time to spend with a man he respected as the mayor of Épernay, as a great businessman, to the point that on his last visit in 1814, he gave his own cross of the Légion d'Honneur to Jean-Remy Mouet. And surprisingly enough, not as a mayor, but for the achievement he made, as a wine merchant for the pride of France worldwide. But also, the place where we are is called the Imperial Gallery. It's very long, I think 700 yards long. It was dug out even before Napoleon came. It was dug out probably around 1720. And we kept the memory of Napoleon's visit with this name of an Imperial Gallery. I have another business question. When did Champagne turn from being a product into brands? Well, it is exactly at the time of Jean-Remy Mouet, because he understood that the point was not just to sell wine with just a mention of the origin. At this time, his predecessors or competitors were selling Aït Mousseau, Cidre Mousseau, sparkling wine from Aït or from Cidre, from one given village. He understood that if he really wanted to express luxury as well, he should sign the product, put his name on it. And this is the beginning of a brand. So, Mouet & Chandon is first of all the name of two families, Mr. Mouet and then his son-in-law, Mr. Chandon. We are proud to put their name on bottles. And his vision was just luxury. But also, he understood that it was not just a point to make good Champagne, but to make Champagne which consumers would love. And then, the principle was to make a consistent style, always the same type of wine. And this made sense to have a signature which was his name and not just an origin of a product. Well, you see, talking of imperial visits, this casque really has a story. It was given by Napoleon to Jean Rémy on another visit in 1810. And it's a small anecdote of military history. Because this had been probably stolen, looted by some French soldiers. But they had the mishap of being on the Emperor's way. And he was so strict and disciplined that he confiscated the casque. But he didn't know what to do with it. And since he was going to visit his friend, Mr. Mouet, he thought, well, why not give him the casque? Actually, he's in the wine business, so he could have some use for it. By the way, it was such a nice present that we didn't use it much, but we placed it in the Imperial Gallery as a souvenir of one of Napoleon's visits. It's really great. Are you familiar with Napoleon's saying about champagne? Yes, there is a very famous one. And he said, in victory, I deserve it, and in defeat, I need it. And by the way, he was an expert of both, so we can trust him. Okay, good. So this lounge, we call it Le Salon Vert, or the Imperial Salon, is very important for us because it is the nicest room in Mr. Mouet's private residence where Napoleon spent the night on every visit he made to Mr. Mouet. So in 1807, 1810, 1814, for example. And we've kept it as it was at the time, with the furniture. And of course, we've kept the green color, which is the imperial color. Here we have a list of some royals who visited the Salon. So this is the first list, there is one for the 20th century. And you can see names such as Napoleon I, his brother, King of Westphalia, the Kings of Saxony, Alexander I, Francis II, Emperor of Austria, the Kings of Prussia, the King of the Netherlands, at the time he was just Prince of Orange, Duke of Wellington. But also Prince Smetanik, who was the main minister in Austria, Princess Stephanie from Baden in Germany, and some French royals. All of them visited the Salon during the 19th century. Were there any shipments to America? Yes, actually our first shipments to America were in 1787. And at first it was shipped to an agent, but we had a direct consignment in 1790 to George Washington because he wanted to have it delivered directly to his Salon. Jean-Rémy Mouet was the mayor of Epernay and he wanted to entertain his guests in style and properly. And thus he had this exquisite building constructed. Yes, you see when he had visitors like Napoleon it was not a problem. But the problem was his escort because it meant many, many people. And so the first thing he did was to add two wings to his private home. And they were on the other side of the street because there was no space left. And so he needed to have a backdrop here. And for this he thought that he should need somebody exceptional to help him and this was Jean-Baptiste Isabey. Jean-Baptiste Isabey was Napoleon's favorite miniature painter, but also he was a man with a sense of staging. He staged Napoleon's coronation, for example. And he took his inspiration from Versailles, from Trianon. And this Orangerie, which is a must in an aristocratic house, was designed by Jean-Baptiste Isabey. And this explains that we've kept the name of Trianon which has been given to the family residence. And the garden has been designed by Isabey as well. And you see the many flowers we have, the pond, all this is really a vision of nature tamed and expressing glory and prestige. It's truly lovely. Thank you. My pleasure. Our pleasure. Apart from the kings and emperors who visited here, were there any others who came? Yes, because unfortunately they came with their armies. And their officers and their soldiers were not as polite as their sovereigns. Which means that they looted the cellars. And at first, for Jeremy Wett, it was a disaster. But he realized that it was not this bad. And he said, those officers and those soldiers who are ruining me now by looting my cellars, will make my fortune later. Because when they go back home, they'll need my champagne and they'll be my base agents and ambassadors. And actually, this is what happened. And that helped spread Mouet around to other countries. Yes, we had more customers in Austria, in England, in Russia, in Prussia, all over Europe. The troops effectively helped spread champagne throughout Europe as a result of Jeremy's attitude, positive attitude. He turned a setback into a setup, and it worked great. Exactly, you see, he was a businessman. And he understood that it was just free sampling. We are with Jean Berchand. He's the Vice President of Heritage and Corporate Communications for Mouet & Chandon. And we're by this magnificent 200-year-old tree. So this tree is very important in the history of Mouet & Chandon because at the time of Emperor Napoleon, the tree existed already. You can see it on the paintings of that time. And under this tree, in 1814, three kings and emperors gathered. They were the Emperor of Russia, the Emperor of Austria, the King of Prussia, the King of Netherlands, and of course, Duke of Wellington from Great Britain. And all of them were here because they were invading France after Napoleon was defeated in Russia. So all of them were here, drinking the champagne of Mr. Jeremy Mouet and celebrating their almost victory on him after something like 15 years of battles and coalitions. So it is an important tree, and we are amazed that it's still alive. Still here. Which means that the heritage of Mr. Mouet and Napoleon are still very strong in this house. Brut imperium. The name of this champagne dates back to the time of Napoleon, of course, because, as you know, he was a friend of Mr. Mouet. And also because, I would say, in the middle of the 19th century, the house wanted to pay homage to the Emperor. And then we decided to call our Brut, which was Mouet et Chandon Brut at that time, Brut imperium, to honor the Emperor. So it is today the most important Brut champagne. You can find it everywhere in the world. It is universally available, and according to many of the critics, it's also one of the best. So maybe we should try why it is one of the best, and why it went around the world in so few years. Because at the beginning of the 19th century, you know, at the time of the wars, it was difficult to export. And then after the French king was reinstated, I mean in 1815-16, the house of Mouet started exporting everywhere in the world to Europe and to America. And then at the end of the 19th century to Asia. You are all over the world, global. Global, all over the world. So this is one of the first luxury brands which is available worldwide, since now almost 150 years. I think we could raise our glass to Brut imperium, to Mouet et Chandon, and to, you know, great heritage, great pedigree. Cheers. Superb. Delicious. By the way, it is made from grapes coming from more than 60 or 70 different villages from Champagne. Because having been created in 1743, Mouet et Chandon has the most important vineyard here in Champagne, more than 2,000 acres. And to make a fine Champagne, you need to get the finest grapes from the different districts of the Champagne area. So we are happy enough to be able to bring some in this blend, grapes coming from all over the Champagne region. It's excellent. It's a complexity and finesse and elegance. In addition to the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars and invaders, there was another enemy that was capable of wiping out the vineyards entirely. This enemy is called Phylloxera, and it is still with us today. It's a microscopic aphid bug that sucks the sap out of the grapevine roots and injects a deadly venom, which then corrodes the root structure and makes the vine wither and die. Phylloxera originated in North America and was brought across the Atlantic to Europe in the 1850s. America and Canada's 16 species of native vines are resistant to Phylloxera as they have tougher roots that heal after the bug is bitten, unlike the European vines. The first record in France of Phylloxera was in 1863. No one is exactly sure how it was brought overseas from North America, but once it did arrive in the south of France, it bit with a vengeance. During the next 30 years, Phylloxera attacked nearly every vineyard in Europe. Thousands of vineyards were completely devastated. Some estimate as much as two-thirds of French vineyards were wiped out, which resulted in the suffering and bankruptcies of their owners and was a big hit on the French economy as a whole. The Champagne region was no exception. By 1918, only a few Champagne vines were not killed by Phylloxera. After much experimenting, a remedy was finally reached. American vine roots and European vines were grafted together. The grapes assumed the character of their European origins, and the rootstock remained impervious to Phylloxera. Virtually every European vineyard would have to be pulled up and replanted, a tough but crucial task. All Champagne vines and other great wine regions of Europe are now partly American.