Lovely bubbly

With a range of Champagne's on offer, including non-vintage Bruts, Cuvees and Clos, Champagne Billecart-Salmon continuously strives to promote its independence. Now managed by François Roland-Billecart - the seventh generation to manage the estate - it still retains ts family-run ethos that has been instilled since the company's inception in 1818, by founders Nicolas François Billecart and Elisabeth Salmon.

And where other Champagne houses have expanded, Billecart-Salmon, which is located in Mareuil sur Aÿ, chooses to remain small in order to preserve the brand.

Producing more than 1.5 million bottles a year though, Champagne Billecart-Salmon does have to limit its sales and allocations to each region, which means it has to strategically work with distributors to make sure the product is getting into the right market.

"Our range will only be found in five-star properties like the Jumeirah Group, Hilton, The One & Only and the Hyatt," says Alexandre Bader, general manager exports, Champagne Billecart-Salmon.

"A lot more hotels will be coming online in Dubai within the next five years. It would be impossible to supply our wines to all of them though, as the demand for our Champagne in this region increases by 30% a year, instead of 5%-10% elsewhere in the world. We have to remember who has supported us in the past, and remain loyal to them," he adds.

In order to produce its 1.5 million bottles, Bader says the Champagne house needs 140 hectares of vines. With more than 30 hectares of its own vines, the remainder of grapes - around 80% - comes from contract growers that Billecart-Salmon has been working with for the past two to three generations.

With only small quantities being produced though, Bader says it can concentrate on quality, rather than quantity.

"Our independence means we can continually improve our offering and produce top quality Clos. From harvest to sales it is a family-run business, so we have complete control. But family-run does not mean we are old-fashioned, and I think the redesign of the label in 2003 shows that we are constantly looking ahead," comments Bader.

"Champagne is a very modern wine, so we sacrificed the traditional armoury on our logo for a sleeker more stylish look. A lot of other Champagne houses are starting to do the same thing."

Joining the company in 1993, Bader oversees global exports for the company, and he has seen a shift in trends, as more people opt for Rose Champagne. With non-vintage Rose flooding the market since 1999, Bader says Champagne Billecart-Salmon prides itself on its Brut Rose.

"To make a Rose you need very good red wines, and in Champagne it is difficult to make red wines. The other way to get the colour of Rose is after maceration, but again this can be difficult, so it is a challenge to produce," he says.

Using a traditional blend of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay grapes for the Champagne, around 8% of red wine is added from the house vineyards in Mareuil Sur Aÿ to produce the Billecart-Salmon Brut Rose. Since 1988, the company has also produced Billecart-Salmon Cuvee Elisabeth Salmon Rose, which has an equal blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vinified as white wine. A small amount of Pinot Noir vinified as red wine is also added.

Since 1964, Billecart-Salmon has also been producing Cuvee Nicolas François Billecart, and is the result of selected classified areas, including Chardonnay from Côte des Blancs and Pinot Noir from Montagne de Reims, which is then partly vinified in traditional casks.

One of the jewels of Billecart-Salmon however, is the Clos Saint Hilaire. Produced from one hectare of chalk and alluvial soil, to create Clos Champagne everything has to be done on site, and only quality vintages are released, with future vintages including 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2002. Bader adds that while this is a top of the range Champagne - with around 3000-6000 bottles produced for each vintage - the Brut acts as a marker for the house.

"It is easy to make a Cuvee as this is a blend of six to eight Crus, but it is very difficult to make a Brut as it uses around 55 Crus from three grapes," says Bader.

For the Dubai market, more than 1000 cases are exported to the emirate each year, with Oman and Qatar also importing Champagne Billecart-Salmon. But as the market matures, there is greater demand for more cases to be imported to the region.

"Today we are selling the 2003 Brut harvest, but I think by the end of 2007 we will already be moving onto the 2004 harvest, which will be great to help increase our offering," says Bader.

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