Moët & Chandon's flagship bottling, and the most recognisable label in Champagne — a non-vintage brut blended from all three of the region's permitted grapes. It is the house's broadest, most consistent wine, built to taste the same in every release.
- Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier — the three Champagne grapes.
- Champagne AOC, northern France — the only place these may be made this way.
- Brut, dry, 12% ABV, light-bodied.
- High acidity, low tannin, fine mousse.
- Non-vintage: a blend across several years, not a single harvest.
How it is made
Champagne is made twice over. The base wines are still and dry and thin, and the second fermentation happens inside the bottle, where the trapped carbon dioxide becomes the bubbles. The wine then rests on its spent yeast — the lees — for a minimum of fifteen months under the appellation rules, which is where the brioche note comes from. Non-vintage brut is assembled from a blend of years and reserve wines, so the house style stays steady while the harvests change.
How it tastes
Green apple and citrus lead, with white blossom behind them and a softer, yeasty note of brioche from the lees ageing. The mousse is fine rather than foamy — a steady, small bead. Acidity is high and the body light, so it stays taut and dry through the finish rather than round.
Where it comes from
Champagne sits further north than any other major French wine region, which is why the grapes keep their acidity and why the wines are blended rather than drawn from a single site. Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier give the body and red-fruit weight; Chardonnay gives the line and the citrus. Moët & Chandon is based in Épernay, in the heart of the region.
Good to know
Champagne is the only appellation in France where the second fermentation must legally happen in the bottle the wine is sold in — the bubbles cannot be added from a tank and still carry the name. The region's chalk subsoil, laid down as marine sediment, drains fast and reflects heat back into the vines.
Contains sulphites. Contains alcohol.