I love a glass of wine as much as anyone else, but Champagne… I’ve had the privilege to visit many different Champagne Maisons over the years, where I’ve had such great experiences I have truly fallen in LOVE with the region! What’s not to love beautiful scenery, amazing people, and delicious wines?

I came to the realization that although I have made several blog posts on my favorite Maisons, I hadn’t yet shared my favorite champagne houses. Continue reading to see the Best Champagne Houses to visit in Champagne and Reims!

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What to wear to the best champagne houses?

Everyone always asks me what to wear when they’re wine tasting. To help with the planning I’ve created a guide of some of my favorite wine-tasting essentials below when planning a trip to the best champagne houses!

Maison Billecart

The Maison Billecart is a Maison House that has thrived across 7 generations, proving to be a majestic experience. Read more about this spectacular family-owned Champagne Maison and my visit and tasting with Winemaker Florent and their CEO 7th Generation Mathieu Billecart on the blog here.

Chief Winemaker Florent Nys beginning our Billecart Maison tour

Watch my Interview & Tasting with Billecart-Salmon Winemaker & CEO during my 2018 Champagne Travels. What a special experience that I’ll always treasure!

Watch my interview (above) with Billecart-Salmon CEO Mathieu Billecart during a recent visit to San Francisco to host a Billecart-Salmon media wine tasting.

Maison DeVenoge: The Bar & The Sop l’Ecurie

Another brand that is open to the public with a beautiful tasting Salon I recommend is Maison DeVenoge. They’re located in downtown Champagne and have a fun bar that has a tasting lounge you can visit and also a hotel that’s lovely if you want a small boutique hotel experience. More on their website here.

The lovely lounge where my tasting was held with DeVenoge Brand President.

Me and Venoge President, Gilles de la Bassetière.

The lineup of fabulous Champagne Wines we tasted during the visit! Also, I love the beautiful bottle shape of the Venoge Champagne.

Maison Dom Perignon

My visit to Maison Dom Perignon was my first official Maison visit during my first of two (hopefully many more) trips to Champagne and it was spectacular.  As much as I want to suggest that you visit Maison Dom Perignon, it isn’t open to the public. However, you can see a behind-the-scenes visit of my tasting on the blog here and feel as if you’ve visited yourself.

Me and Dom Perignon Eunologist Nicholas Lane

The spectacular lineup of Dom Perignon Wines we tasted during my visit!

An absolutely lovely visit, I can’t wait to come back again!

Maison Krug

One of the most prestigious and well-known luxury Champagne brands Krug is another Maison I recommend visiting (if you’re able to secure an invitation). It’s also not open to the public however, they do host large collectors and media. I had the privilege of visiting Maison Krug so take a peek at my visit and see behind the doors of this historic Maison Krug. More about Maison Krug on the blog here.

All smiles arriving to Maison Krug for my tasting!

Such a bright and beautiful tasting room!

Hard at work smelling and tasting the stunning Krug Champagne Wines. I am so appreciative that I was able to visit Maison Krug and have this experience.

Laurent Perrier

Laurent Perrier has an amazing style and consistency combining the traditional and new ways of champagne. This beautiful Maison is ideally situated at the crossroads of the three main wine-growing areas of the Marne département: the Montagne de Reims, the Vallée de la Marne, and the Côte des Blancs.

Touring the tank room (the older original one) followed by the new tank room below.

Cellars in Champagne are truly magical. The bottles are aged so long that mold grows on them. This is seen everywhere in the cellars and is a good thing showing how long they’ve been aging.

The Laurent-Perrier Tasting has begun. What a lineup of Champagnes we got to enjoy during this visit!

So delicious, more please!

Louis Roederer Maison

I have visited their California Winery, Roederer Estate located in Anderson Valley, check out my blog on Anderson Valley’s Top 10 Wineries here. So it was so exciting and beyond special seeing their Champagne Headquarters where it all began. Read more about my Spectacular Louis Roederer Champagne Maison Tour & Tasting here.

Touring the Louis Roederer Champagne House barrel room.

Thank you to the Louis Roederer Maison team for hosting me and sharing your beautiful champagnes with me.

Hotel du Marc, Veuve Clicquot

Another amazing and historic Maison on this list is Hotel du Marc, Veuve Clicquot’s private residence. This is not open to the public, however, VIPs, media, and bloggers may be lucky to get to visit. Read about my spectacular wine tasting & lunch with Veuve Cliquot Winemaker here.

Touring the stunning Hotel du Marc during our Veuve-Clicquot tasting followed by lunch. What a magical and unforgettable experience!

I was hosted for lunch and a wine tasting with Winemaker Bertrand Varoquier, read more about my interview with Bertrand Varoquier here.

Maison Michel Gonet

Another fabulous family-owned Champagne brand I had the pleasure of getting to know is Michel Gonet. Michel’s lovely daughter Sophie hosted me for a tour of their winemaking facility followed by lunch at their downtown Champagne Winery. See more of the fun below!

It’s picture-perfect, it almost doesn’t feel real!

Me and Sophie Gonet during my fabulous Winery Tour & Tasting. She’s so smart, talented, and full of information.

What a line up of stunning Michel Gonet Champaigns we had the privilege to taste during our fabulous lunch.

Maison Ruinart

Maison Ruinart and their Chef de Caves Frederic Panaitis is who I have to thank for my love for Champagne and the first invitation that brought me to Champagne. When I interviewed, Chef de Caves, Winemaker Frédéric Panaiotis of Ruinart in San Francisco, who would have known he would invite me to Champagne? 6 months later my romantic affair with Champagne, their beautiful wines and their incredibly rich history would start. Watch my Interview with Winemaker Frédéric Panaiotis on the blog here, and check out my spectacular visit to Maison Ruinart and Tasting with Winemaker Frédéric Panaiotis here.

Arriving at the historic and beautiful Maison Ruinart.

Heading into the Ruinart Caves. These are beyond historic and there’s so much rich history from WWII and the locals living for a few years below ground in these caves to hide from the Germans. Learn the full story on my Ruinart Blog post here.

My guided tasting was led by Chef de Caves Frederic Panaiotis. See more here. 

Veuve Clicquot Reims Maison

Veuve Clicquot is hands down the most well-known Champagne brand in America, possibly worldwide. It wasn’t until my second trip to Reims that I visited the Maison and it was spectacular to see. I also had a magical video interview with one of their Winemakers Gaelle Goossens which you can watch on my YouTube Channel here.

Stepping into the Veuve Clicquot Crayeres. There are only 5 Maisons in downtown Reims with Crayeres. Veuve Clicquot, Reims so it’s very special getting to tour a Maison with a Crayeres such as Veuve Clicquot. Read more about my visit to the Maison here.

The staircase exiting the cellars which is quite significant as each year a Vintage was made the year is noted on the steps.

After the tour, we visited the Gift Shop where you can personalize a Veuve Clicquot tin with your hometown. How adorable is this?!