For most of us city dwellers, the environment is important as a concept, even if we’re not exactly getting hands-on with the soil under our feet. Yet there is one thing we can all appreciate that has an unbreakable connection to the environment: Champagne.
Every time you enjoy a glass of fine fizz, you’re tasting the environment in which it was produced, the distinctive terroir that lends its character to that particular bottle. The two are inseparable, with the landscape, soil quality and climate all contributing to a unique flavour profile.
Needless to say, that makes the environment – and sustainability, the theme of this issue – of critical importance to any champagne house. None however are doing as much to ensure the longevity of the land as Champagne Telmont. Telmont as a house was founded in 1912, so they’re no novices. Since 2017 however, the Épernay-adjacent maison has been almost single-mindedly pursuing their ambitions to become a fully-organic, eco-friendly Champagne – and they’re well on their way.
Currently, 72% of the Telmont estate’s nearly 25 hectares of land is certified organic, with the rest midway through conversion. Telmont’s partner vineyards too are pursuing organic status, encouraging biodiversity across the landscapes of the region, preserving species and taking the terroirs back to their natural beauty. It’s a massive campaign and one that Champagne as a whole, so often over-agriculturalised, can really use.
That said, organic alone does not a sustainable operation make. To complement their preservation of the landscape, Telmont will be doing away with all outer packaging (the stuff that nobody really needs and that every Champagne house insists on plying us with) and bottles made from 85% recycled glass.
Backed by a commitment to 100% renewable energy sources (including an on-site solar power plant), a fully electric fleet of vehicles and an overhauled logistic chain with due consideration to its carbon footprint, Telmont are stepping up and doing their part to preserve the delicate balance of their terroir.
So, what does this all mean for the champagne itself? Other than knowing that what’s in your glass was made with love both for the wine and the environment that produced it, nothing. The Réserve Brut is as rich and beautifully balanced as ever and will continue to be, a masterful blend of seven different vintages brought together in one bottle.
Telmont is living, breathing proof that a change in the way a Champagne is made, a more considered, thoughtful and sustainable production, can be achieved while preserving the distinctive character that made their wine so renowned.
For now, they’re the only Champagne house on this self-imposed mission on behalf of the environment and, for that alone, deserve a toast. Let’s hope that soon they won’t be alone.
Champagne Telmont is available to buy exclusively from Selfridges.
