The most famous story in wine — a monk crying “I am drinking stars!” — is almost entirely a myth. The true history of Champagne is stranger, and features an English scientist and a widow who changed the drink forever.
Champagne is the most celebratory wine on earth, and the most mythologized. Strip away the legends and you find a fascinating relay of invention, spread across a century and a half and several unlikely hands. It is a classic quarter-turn intersection — and it leads, eventually, to the sparkling wines being made today in the Willamette Valley.
The monk who didn’t invent Champagne
Dom Pierre Pérignon was a real person — a Benedictine monk and cellar master at Hautvillers Abbey near Épernay from 1668 until his death in 1715.[1] But he did not invent sparkling wine, and he never said “I am drinking stars.” That legend was largely spun in 1821 by a later monk to raise money for the abbey.[1] In fact, Pérignon spent his career trying to remove bubbles, which he considered a fault — his real gifts were blending grapes for balance and improving the wine’s quality. And the sparkling method itself? It was described by an Englishman, the physician Christopher Merret, to the Royal Society in 1662 — six years before Pérignon even arrived at Hautvillers.[1]
The widow who did: Madame Clicquot
If anyone deserves the crown, it may be a widow. Veuve Clicquot (“the Widow Clicquot”) took over her late husband’s house in Reims and turned it into a powerhouse of innovation.[2] She created the first known vintage champagne in 1810, and in 1816 she invented the riddling table — the angled rack that lets a winemaker work the dead yeast into the bottle’s neck for removal, giving Champagne its brilliant clarity.[2] Her method was copied by every house and is still used today; she also made the first blended rosé champagne in 1818.[2]
| 1662 | Christopher Merret describes the sparkling method (England)[1] |
|---|---|
| Dom Pérignon | Cellar master at Hautvillers 1668–1715; refined, not invented[1] |
| Mme Clicquot | First vintage (1810); the riddling table (1816); rosé (1818)[2] |
| The terroir | Chalk soil, a cool climate, and deep chalk cellars (crayères)[3] |
| The name | Champagne AOC established 1936 — the name is protected by law[3] |
Chalk, cold, and the name
What makes it possible is the ground and the cold. Champagne’s chalk soil and cool northern climate give grapes the searing acidity great sparkling wine needs, and its deep chalk tunnels — the crayères — age the bottles at a steady 10–12°C.[3] Those same cellars sheltered whole towns during the World Wars. And because the name means so much, it is fiercely protected: since the AOC of 1936, only sparkling wine made in the Champagne region by the traditional method may legally be called Champagne.[3] The region’s hillsides and cellars are now UNESCO World Heritage.
Champagne was not invented by a monk in a flash of genius. It was built, bottle by bottle, by an English scientist, a patient monk, and a brilliant widow.
The sparkle spreads
Champagne’s method did not stay in Champagne. The traditional method — a second fermentation in the bottle — travelled the world, and today it is producing thrilling sparkling wine far from Reims, including in Oregon’s cool Willamette Valley, where the same high-acid magic works its charm. For the bigger French picture, return to our guide to the Burgundy wine region and beyond.
Related reading: Willamette Valley sparkling wine · Champagne in the World Wars · the Burgundy wine region · the Wine History Timeline · Pinot Meunier
Frequently asked questions
Did Dom Pérignon invent Champagne?
No. He was a real Benedictine monk and cellar master at Hautvillers (1668–1715) who improved winemaking, but he did not invent sparkling wine — the method was described earlier by the Englishman Christopher Merret in 1662, and much of the “inventor” legend was created in 1821 to raise money for his abbey.
Why can only some sparkling wine be called Champagne?
Because the name is legally protected. Since the Champagne AOC was established in 1936, only sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region of France by the traditional method may be called Champagne.
Sources
- “Dom Pérignon (monk)” (Benedictine cellar master at Hautvillers 1668–1715; the “inventor” legend spun in 1821; he sought to remove bubbles; Christopher Merret described the sparkling method to the Royal Society in 1662), Wikipedia / History Hit. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dom_P%C3%A9rignon_(monk)
- “Veuve Clicquot” (house founded 1772; Madame Clicquot’s first vintage champagne, 1810; the riddling table, 1816; first blended rosé champagne, 1818), Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veuve_Clicquot
- “Definition and protection” / “Champagne and its history” (chalk soil and cool climate; crayères at 10–12°C; Champagne AOC established 1936 and the legal protection of the name), Union des Maisons de Champagne / Champagne.fr. maisons-champagne.com
Want to read more?
Books we drew on and recommend for going deeper on wine history.
The World Atlas of WineHugh Johnson & Jancis Robinson
9000 Years of Wine: A World HistoryRod Phillips
A Concise Guide to Wine and Blind TastingNeel BurtonAs an Amazon Associate, Wine History Tours earns from qualifying purchases. This supports our research at no extra cost to you.
