Bollinger

Three centuries of the most exclusive champagne

Athanase de Villermont, the son of a noble family, inherited a large estate in the Aÿ area of Champagne, with magnificent potential for sparkling wine production, but as an aristocrat he could not participate in the trade. It was in 1829, when he met Joseph Bollinger, a German who was learning about the Champagne wine trade, and Paul Renaudin, a man fascinated by the world of wine, that the Renaudin-Bollinger & Cie brand was born. Thus, with the help of Bollinger for sales and Renaudin for winemaking, Villermont founded a champagne house that has endured through the centuries.

Since Joseph Bollinger married Charlotte de Villermont, the house has been run by the Bollinger family, but it was not until 1960 that it was exclusively theirs. In 2008, for the first time in its history, the Maison Champagne Bollinger placed its future in the care of a president who was not a member of the family. Their choice fell on Jérôme Philipon, a native of the Champagne region, who had led an impressive career with large industrial groups. With the support of the Bollinger family, Jérôme Philipon has expanded his predecessor's programme of modernisation and investment. With him, the Maison Bollinger has continued to preserve its traditional know-how while incorporating the best of new technologies for the future development of the brand, both in terms of quality and commercial growth.

The Champagne Bollinger winery in Aÿ has been creating prestigious characterful champagnes, distinguished by their elegance and complexity, since 1829. They are the result of a rigorous attention to detail, representing the search for a certain form of perfection. They have 164 hectares, most of them classified as Grand or Premier Cru, where the Pinot Noir variety predominates, which forms the backbone of the style of the Bollinger winery's champagnes. As a guarantee of supreme quality, the best Crus are vinified in wood, always giving their wines twice the time required by the appellation to mature slowly and develop their full character.