What Is Grower Champagne? Why It's Changing Champagne Forever

Nearly four weeks have passed since we first landed in Champagne, and I still can't stop thinking about it.

When we arrived, we had one clear goal: find our first Champagne producer.

Champagne has been one of the biggest gaps in the Vintrepid portfolio. It's a region I've always loved, and despite broader declines in wine consumption around the world, Champagne continues to grow. More and more people are choosing a glass of Champagne to start the evening rather than a glass of white wine, and I completely understand why.

What surprised me most, though, wasn't the quality of the wines. It was what is happening behind the scenes. We spent three days visiting small producers across the region, and everywhere we went we kept hearing the same story.

The next generation has arrived.

So what is Grower Champagne?

Most people assume every Champagne house grows its own grapes and makes its own wine.
The reality is very different.

Around 90% of the vineyards in Champagne are owned by independent growers. However, most of those growers sell their fruit to the large Champagne houses rather than making wine themselves.

Names like Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Taittinger and Pommery buy grapes from hundreds of different growers before blending wines under their own labels.

Grower Champagne works differently.

A Grower Champagne producer grows the grapes, farms the vineyards and makes the Champagne under their own name.

They're known as Récoltant-Manipulant (RM) producers.

What's remarkable is just how small this movement still is.

Less than 20% of Champagne is made by Grower Champagne producers.

In fact, LVMH alone sells more Champagne than the entire Grower Champagne movement.

Why is everything changing?

Twenty years ago, many family estates simply sold their grapes to the big houses. Today, something different is happening as the sons and daughters are taking over.

Instead of selling fruit, they're investing in wineries, bottling their own Champagne and building brands around their family vineyards.

That was probably the biggest takeaway from our time in Champagne. Almost every producer we met was part of this younger generation. They're farming organically, working with lower dosage and thinking carefully about vineyard health.

They're not trying to make Champagne that tastes exactly the same every year. They're trying to express where it came from.

What does it mean for drinkers?

I genuinely think some of the most exciting Champagne being made today is coming from these small producers.

Not because the big houses don't make great wine—they absolutely do—but because Grower Champagne offers something different, more personality, individuality and connection to place.

The next time you pick up a bottle of Champagne, turn it over.

If you see RM on the label, you're looking at a Grower Champagne.

I'd encourage everyone to give one a try.

After spending several days in Champagne, I think this movement is only just getting started.