Champagne wine map

Two bottles of Champagne, both labelled brut, can taste worlds apart. The reason is almost always the place: which slope, which chalk, which grape. This Champagne wine map puts the whole region on one wall, drawn to scale, so the geography behind the bubbles finally clicks.

It is the same map we keep in view while recording the podcast: a quick way to see why a blanc de blancs from the Côte des Blancs has nothing in common with a Pinot Noir from the Côte des Bar, and where the great cru villages actually sit.

The five growing areas of Champagne

Champagne is not one vineyard but five, each strung along a different slope and built on chalk. The map outlines all of them with their dominant grape:

• Montagne de Reims: the broad wooded ridge south of Reims, heartland of Pinot Noir
• Vallée de la Marne: following the river west from Épernay, home of Meunier
• Côte des Blancs: the south-facing chalk slope of Chardonnay, the source of blanc de blancs
• Côte de Sézanne: the Côte des Blancs’ southern echo, mostly Chardonnay
• Côte des Bar (Aube): the southernmost area, planted heavily to Pinot Noir

Three grapes do almost all the work, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier, alongside the rare survivors Arbane, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris. Trace the slopes and you start to read a blend before you taste it.

What’s actually on the map

This is a reference piece, not just décor. It carries:

• The five growing areas, outlined and colour-coded
• The cru villages, ranked by the historic échelle des crus: 17 Grand Cru and 42 Premier Cru villages
• The chalk (craie) soils and the rivers, because the best slopes follow both
• The three main grapes by area, plus the rare varieties still permitted
• The trade towns, Reims and Épernay, with the Avenue de Champagne where the great houses keep their cellars

Printed to last

We print on 200 gsm uncoated matte, archival paper with a soft, premium feel and no glare under a lamp. The inks are giclée-quality and fade-resistant, so it still looks right years from now. It arrives rolled, ready for any standard 50 x 70 cm frame.

Every map is printed on demand and shipped from the production facility nearest you, so nothing sits in a warehouse and shipping stays short.

Made for the room where you actually drink wine

It looks at home above the dining table, in the kitchen, along a hallway, or over the rack in a wine cellar. The labelling is French, the way the region names its own wine, which is part of the charm.

If you are still learning the difference between the grandes maisons and grower champagnes, our conversation with Édouard Roy of Champagne EPC and our visit with Frédéric Zeimett, general manager of Champagne Leclerc Briant are good companions.

Pair it with our other wine maps

Going wider, or deeper on another region? We also make detailed maps of France, Bordeaux and Burgundy. They hang beautifully as a set.