with a special menu to complement the range of styles produced at the winery in Reims being served until October.
While the longevity of the brand is cause enough for celebration, its ongoing success and innovation of Veuve Clicquot has helped to create global appetite for the region’s sparkling wine. Much of the credit is owed to Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, who took control of the business in 1805, following the sudden death of her husband Francois due to illness. Veuve was added to acknowledge the new management.
Madame Clicquot is also credited with creating a new style of rosé Champagne by developing a blend of white and red wine to produce the base wine. Veuve Clicquot started exporting its rosé in 1775. Rosé continues to be a major concern for the winemaking team, which is working to improve its handling of pinot noir, with 30 hectares of its 350ha estate vineyard earmarked for the production of still red wines.
As for that sunny label, it was first introduced in 1876 to distinguish dry styles of champagne from sweet ones. It was trademarked the following year and was used on all the winery’s production. In addition to its widely available non-vintage Brut Champagne and Rosé Champagne, Veuve Clicquot also produces vintage Rosé and Brut styles as well as its prestige cuvée, La Grande Dame, the top-of-the-line white and rosé sparkling wines that pay tribute to Madame Clicquot.