Published by Jeremy.
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Champagne has always been a wine region that was rather high on our list to visit, and we were lucky enough to spend a few days in the region in late 2025 on our way to Alsace to check out the Christmas markets.
Although our time in the wine region was a bit more brief than we otherwise would've liked, we got a chance to visit five truly amazing wineries in Champagne to get our fill of spectacular traditional method sparkling wine.
From classics with world-famous cellars to new gems that redefined what world-class Champagne truly means, we hit a really nice cross-section in these wineries during our visit!
As with all of our winery roundups, this article only features the Champagne houses we personally visited when traveling in the region. We look forward to visiting more in our next trip to Champagne!
Note: Most producers in Champagne require advanced reservations. Some larger houses may have on-site bars for walk-in tastings; however, we booked all of our tastings well in advance. Reconfirm these details prior to visiting as Champagne houses can and do book up in advance.
Taittinger
We've been fans of Taittinger's Brut NV for many years now, and when we decided to visit a few of the larger Champagne houses, we were really excited to get in for a tasting here.
We ended up on a tour toward the end of the day and were the only guests, so we got a private tour of the beautiful cellars and a guided tasting of three bottles of Taittinger.
The first was the Brut Reserve (the bottle we're used to drinking). The second was the Prelude, a Grand Cru bottle which felt like a more intensely concentrated version of the Reserve in all respects (we could get used to drinking this one!).
The final was their prestigious Comtes de Champagne that came with an intensity and price point to match. Admittedly, this one was by far our favorite of the lineup, but as we always have to balance price to quality, we also recognized that it was likely out of our budget. Still, a great tour all around here, and now we're eyeing bottles of Prelude for an even more intense experience over the traditional reserve.
Taittinger is located at 9 Place Saint Nicaise in Reims.
Veuve Clicquot
Veuve Clicquot is a second large producer we visited while in Champagne, and, like Taittinger, we wanted to see their famed cellars.
We booked a premium Only One Quality, The Finest tour to get the most out of our cellar visit, which included a robust tour plus a tasting in the cellar itself with slightly more premium products, including the Brut Carte Jaune (Magnum), Vintage 2015, Vintage 2015 Rose, and Extra Old Extra Brut.
The cellar tour here is just wonderful and certainly gives you an appreciation for just how vast the tunnels underneath the area are. While this one has some demonstration equipment, riddling racks, and a video projection onto the cellar walls that feels a bit extravagant (it is a major Champagne house, so of course they're going to go fairly over the top), simply being in the space was enough to make any wine lover fill with delight.
The tasting itself was quite fun, not just for its location, but a surprising wine find we never would've expected. Yes, we quite enjoy the entry Veuve Clicquot Champagne when we can find it for a reasonable price (typically in Europe over the USA), but their Extra Brut Extra Old (4th edition) was in a league of its own. This bottle contains reserve wine dating back to 1996, and offered an impressive concentration of brioche, toast, and almond- unlike any other in the lineup.
Naturally, we left with a bottle, and given its relatively reasonable price at the winery directly (about on par with what you'd pay for the normal label in the USA), we wish we could've grabbed more than one. Although this one does make its way to the USA in limited amounts, it is one of those bottles we'd drive to Veuve to buy at their gift shop in future visits, too.
Veuve Clicquot is located at 1 Rue Albert Thomas 51100 in Reims.
Champagne Philipponnat
Whenever we told those in the industry that we were visiting Philipponnat in Ay, there was a near-universal word that would come up- quality. Although we weren't familiar with the Champagnes at this one going in, we left as converts and consider them to be among the very finest producers we've ever had.
We got to join the Clos de Goisses tour during our visit, which included a walk through the acclaimed vineyard site of the same name, a cellar tour, and a tasting of five bottles within the Philipponnat lineup- ending with a bottle of Clos de Goisses 2015.
Our host told us that when he first tried Philipponnat's entry-level Champagne, he remarked that if the intro bottle was that good, he couldn't imagine what the more premium bottles would be like. This was indeed quite an understatement. As we progressed from bottle to bottle, we were blown away by the quality as each one was better than the last (and somehow in the top tier of all Champagnes we have ever tried).
And then we got to Clos de Goisses.
This bottle is a Champagne that was in a league of its own. Toast, brioche, and pastry notes? Yes. But also soy sauce, miso, mushrooms, and savory umami notes. This one also had such a long finish that we were tasting it 30 minutes later- only interrupted by lunch.
The only downside was the price, as Clos de Goisses trended towards south of 400 Euros during our visit in 2025. That said, it was still so good we bought two as one just wouldn't be enough.
Philipponnat is located at 13 rue du Pont – Mareuil-sur-Ay – CS 60002 – 51160 in Ay-Champagne.
Champagne Laherte Freres
Champagne Laherte came recommended to us by a friend and was an interesting stop during our time in the region for two reasons.
First, Laherte has a strong focus on Blanc de Noir styles made not with Pinot Noir as the dominant grape, but, rather, Meunier. While this is not the case for every bottle they make, naturally, it was a recurring trend that we appreciated in the bottles we got to taste.
Second, it was also one of just a few cases where we got to try rose Champagne, and theirs were quite flavorful. We even picked up a bottle of their rose de saignee to bring home with us for a different kind of bottle with rose made in a more Provencal approach as opposed to blending.
Even better? Bottles at Champagne Laherte also came in at a reasonable price point, which we fully appreciated.
Champagne Laherte Freres is located at 2W3H+GP in Chavot-Courcourt.
Champagne Varnier-Fanniere
Champagne house Varnier-Fanniere also came recommended to us by a friend, and was a tasting we will hardly forget- we got to taste with the owner, Valerie Varnier!
During our brief tour of their facilities, which include some rather historic equipment (like a classic press), we found out that Valerie took over the business after her husband passed away. Since then, she's led the charge from production to sales, tasting, and even operating an Airbnb rental on their property as well.
When we expressed interest in tasting the Grand Cru lineup within their portfolio, we were fortunate enough to sample many exquisite bottles, including St. Denis, a 2015 Vintage, and the Jean-Fanniere Origine, to name a few. Each one of these bottles showcased a range in Champagne that you really need to try side-by-side to understand, and they were just stellar iterations all around.
But perhaps the best part of our tasting here came when we bought bottles. Despite the immense quality at Varnier-Fanniere, Valerie has maintained a respectable price point for every bottle sold at the cellar. Where nearby producers may charge two or three times as much for similar quality, bottles of Champagne Varnier-Fanniere made us do a double-take in all the best ways.
We left with seven bottles, and wish we could've bought more.
So if you want to explore a Champagne house sticking to its roots, producing stellar wine, and coming in at a reasonable price to match, Varnier-Fanniere is the place to be.
Champagne Varnier-Fanniere is located at 23 Rem du Midi, 51190 in Avize.
Do you have a favorite winery in Champagne we should check out in our next visit? Comment below to share!