De Venoge

De Venoge: The King's Decree and the Empty Chair

Until 1728 the law made wine travel in casks, and Reims complained that its grey wine lost its quality there. On 25 May 1728, a decree of Louis XV's Council let Champagne cross Normandy in baskets of 50 or 100 bottles, to be shipped abroad from Rouen, Caen, Dieppe and Le Havre. De Venoge calls it the birth certificate of Champagne. In the courtyard of its house at 33 avenue de Champagne the king sits in bronze with a quill and a glass, an empty chair beside him. You can read a Perrier-Jouët president's initials on the façade, find the blue ribbon on the labels, taste Chardonnay against Pinot Noir, and take the chair for a toast.