The Best Bubble-Free Wines Made in the Champagne Region

For many, the Champagne region and bubbles go hand-in-hand. In the case of Coteaux Champenois wines, made predominantly in the famed fizzy region, there is nary a bubble in sight. 

Far less popular than its sparkling counterparts from Champagne, this little-known style of still wine is experiencing a renaissance, especially amongst small grower-producers across the region. 

The history of Coteaux Champenois wines

Coteaux Champenois wines pre-date its bubbly relative. Prior to the discovery of the méthode champenoise, the signature vinification method that gives Champagne its effervescence, the region was better known for its still red wines made from Pinot Noir. Their production dates to Roman times and were enjoyed regularly by European royalty. 

Juliette Alpis understands the appeal of Coteaux Champenois wines. Alpis is a winemaker at Domaine Les Monts Fournois, a Premier Cru estate in Ludes, located in the northern part of the Montagne de Reims. She says that Coteaux Champenois wines are part of the heritage of French viticulture and vinification. 

“Served at the Coronations of the Kings in Reims, the red wines of the Montagne de Reims, particularly from Bouzy, fueled the feud between them and the great wines of Burgundy,” says Alpis. She says a local reference book in Bouzy from the 19th century describes the wines as “distinguished above all by their delicacy and their bouquet.”

The discovery of the méthode champenoise during the late 17th century caused the region’s still wines to fall out of fashion. It wasn’t until the 20th century that producers began to revive these forgotten wines. 

In 1974, Coteaux Champenois received its own AOC designation, which permitted the wines to be vinified across a large swath of the region in white, rosé, and red formats. All seven of the region’s denoted grape varieties — Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Arbane, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris — are permissible in Coteaux Champenois production. 

Rediscovering a terroir-focused style

In 2012, with the help of her winemaker cousins Raphaël and Vincent Bérêche, Alpis produced her first Coteaux Champenois at Les Monts Fournois. Crafted entirely from Chardonnay grown in the Montagne de Reims, the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation and is aged for 18 months through the sur-lie process, where the wine rests on its lees in barrel. 

“The exposure is entirely south-facing, which allows the Chardonnay to benefit from the freshness of the Montagne de Reims, as well as a southern exposure, which is ideal for the maturation of the bunches destined for Coteaux Champenois production,” says Alpis. 

In 2020, Fabian Daviaux, winemaker at Champagne Chavost in the Marne Valley, crafted his first Coteaux Champenois blanc. His inspiration came from a plot of vines originally planted in 1954. 

“This plot gives very small yields, with small bunches of very small, very concentrated berries,” says Daviaux. He says this small amount of high-quality juice is ideal for Coteaux Champenois production. 

Daviaux produced just 1,191 bottles of his inaugural Coteaux Champenois blanc. “The only disadvantage is that we produce very little volume,” he says. 

In the Marne Valley, Bryan Marx, winemaker at Marx-Coutelas and Domaine des Tuileries in Venteuil, produced his first Coteaux Champenois rouge during his first harvest in 2018. 

“With my father, we made still red wine destined for rosé Champagne production. Though each time we tasted the wine, it was very good,” says Marx. 

The two decided to turn the juice into a still wine. They elongated the vinification for an additional six months in barrel. “It was the first time in the history of our house that we made a Coteaux Champenois,” he says. 

Because of the expansive area of production and the wide spectrum of permitted grape varieties, Coteaux Champenois winemakers in the region enjoy great stylistic freedom. 

“The Champagnes of different winemakers of the previous generations looked the same, simply because the [enologists] were encouraging the same vinification process, despite the terroir,” says Marx. He says the younger generations are more focused on showcasing the unique terroirs of the region, both through still and sparkling wine productions. 

Alpis says that the vinification of Coteaux Champenois wines can be “very educational and explanatory for the winemaker.” Great attention is required during the sur-lie aging process. Alpis finds that while sparkling wines from the region reflect terroir, the bubbles can sometimes mask much of it. 

“With regards to terroir reflection between the two, the biggest difference for me is the time required to fully express itself,” says Alpis. With sparkling Champagne, Alpis finds that terroir best comes through after a minimum of five years of sur-lie aging, whereas still Coteaux Champenois wines will be expressive as early as their second year in bottle.  

“Coteaux Champenois shows the world that we can produce a very good wine in Champagne, and that the bubbles are not an artifice to hide anything,” says Marx. 

Daviaux agrees. “Coteaux Champenois wines show that we are not only Champagne producers, but we are also still wine producers, and that we can do both in a very good way,” he says.