Sommeliers discover the story behind Champagne Taittinger

What does it take to create a bottle of Champagne that people around the world recognise and cherish? For a group of sommeliers and restaurateurs from the Master Innholders community, a two-day visit to Champagne Taittinger offered the chance to find out first-hand, exploring the history, skill and painstaking attention to detail behind one of the region’s most celebrated names.

The educational trip, held on 28 and 29 September, took the group from the historic cellars beneath Reims to the vineyards and winery. Along the way, they discovered how the region’s royal heritage, centuries of winemaking tradition and the expertise of its producers have helped shape Taittinger’s enduring appeal.

For sommelier Alexander Lamboll, the experience was “a true pilgrimage” and an opportunity to see first-hand the centuries of history that have helped make Champagne and Taittinger global icons.

One of the first stops was Taittinger’s historic cellars at Saint-Nicaise in Reims. Dating back to Roman times, these underground chalk quarries now provide the conditions in which thousands of bottles mature. The group also explored the royal connections of Reims Cathedral and learned more about how Champagne rose to prominence, before heading into the countryside around Épernay.

There, a walk through the hillside vineyards led to dinner at the elegant Château de la Marquetterie, where the Taittinger family began its winemaking journey in the 1930s.

The visit also opened the doors to Taittinger’s winery, giving the sommeliers a rare look at production in action. Among the rows of steel tanks and oak barrels, they saw the care that goes into fermentation and witnessed the disgorging process. For Alexander, seeing production up close revealed an exceptional level of attention to detail, bringing to life the skill behind every stage of the process.

Tastings throughout the trip brought these discoveries together, allowing the group to explore the character of different cuvées and consider their food-pairing potential.

But the value of the experience extended beyond learning about production. For sommeliers, understanding a wine’s origins and the decisions behind its creation can transform the way they introduce it to guests. As Alexander explained, the visit had helped him enormously in communicating the expertise, planning and passion that go into every bottle:

“Wine can sometimes feel daunting to those unfamiliar with it. Being able to share the story behind a Champagne, from the place it comes from to the craft involved in making it, can make that experience more accessible and engaging.”

For the sommeliers who joined the Master Innholders in Champagne, the trip offered fresh knowledge, a deeper appreciation of Taittinger’s heritage and new stories to take back to their teams and guests.