1. Geographic Setting and Viticultural Terrain
2. Noble Grape Varieties and Supporting Cast
3. Viticultural Practices and Vineyard Management
4. Winemaking Techniques and Wine Classifications
5. Trade, Recognition, and Market Value
Geographic Setting and Viticultural Terrain
Les Riceys, the largest cru in Champagne, comprises three historic villages: Ricey-Haut, Ricey-Haute-Rive, and Ricey-Bas. As noted by V. Rendu in Ampélographie française , these three hamlets together form a single 1,500-hectare vineyard area.
Nestled in a valley carved by the Laignes river, the villages are surrounded by the highest elevations in the department. The vineyard slopes, covered in vines, offer a range of scenic vistas. The terrain is notably rugged, with hills composed primarily of limestone carbonates often intersected by veins of clay or mixed with gravel and iron oxide. In the valley itself, the soil becomes more clay-limestone in nature.
The best vineyard exposures face east and south.
Noble Grape Varieties and Supporting Cast
The fertile hills of Les Riceys were historically reserved for noble grape varieties.
Chief among them was the small-berried Pineau noir, accompanied by minor quantities of Pineau blanc and, occasionally, Pineau gris or Burets.
Other highly regarded varieties included:
Pineau à grandes feuilles, known for its generous yields.
Pineau à feuilles découpées, less productive than the former.
Sévigné rouge, a pink-skinned grape used for firm, still wines.
Noirien, a distinct elongated black grape, once common in the vineyards of the Molesme Abbey. Though its wines were unpredictable, it remained in limited use due to its historical presence.
At the lower elevations, Gamai noir served as the vineyard base.
The Troyen grape, although more productive than Gamai, was considered inferior. Quick to ripen and prone to berry drop if not harvested early, its initially pleasant wine quickly deteriorated.
Some hills in Les Riceys were planted exclusively with Pineau blanc, the foundation of white vineyards. Also present were Sévigné blanc, with golden spotted berries, and Sévigné vert, which remained green under sunlight and yielded more than its white counterpart.
These diverse grapes produced spirited, sparkling wines with considerable charm.
Viticultural Practices and Vineyard Management
The vine-growing methods in Les Riceys shared similarities with those of the Yonne department. Vines were planted as bush vines rooted in trenches of variable depth (based on topsoil thickness) and spaced 1.65 meters wide.
Each trench contained two rows of vines planted in opposite directions. An interval of 1.66 meters separated the lines, while individual bushes were spaced 0.80 meters apart. Over time, this regular arrangement often became less orderly.
During the growing season, vines were pruned three times, from March to September. From the fourth leaf stage onward, the shoots were supported by stakes 1.50 meters high. Pruning began around February 15.
The vineyards were never fertilized. Vines began producing grapes in their fourth year and reached stability by the sixth leaf, depending on the variety, soil composition, and exposure.
In plots planted exclusively with fine varieties, the average yield did not exceed 15 hectoliters per hectare. In favorable years, harvest began and ended in September.
In average or poor years, it typically started in early October and could last until October 15 or 18.
Winemaking Techniques and Wine Classifications
Harvest was conducted with great care. Only noble grapes were used in the first pressings, and poor-quality grapes were excluded even from later ones to ensure better results. Fermentation lasted just a few days to preserve the wine’s finesse and clarity.
For grey or rosé wines, only the finest grapes were selected. The must remained in vats for just 24 to 36 hours. These wines, varying in hue, possessed a distinctive bouquet, exceptional elegance, and lightness.
Produced only in outstanding vintages, they were always of premium quality.
The vats ranged from 21 to 34 hectoliters in volume. Racking took place in January or February.
Riceys wines were divided into three categories:
Fine wines
Passe-tout-grain, made from mixed grapes and intended for the middle class
Ordinary wines
As stated by a contemporary writer:
“The fine wines of Les Riceys should not be compared to second-tier wines of Upper Burgundy. They stand alongside Moulin-à-Vent, Thorins, and the wines of Les Olivottes, Chaînette, and Migraine: subtle, lively, generous, fragrant, and frank on the palate—far superior to their reputation when the year is favorable, and worthy of distinction.
Their austerity recalls the red wines of Champagne, to which enthusiasts often compare them.” (A.Jullien, 1832)
Though commerce often classified them among Lower Burgundy wines, this was their true place. They required two years in barrels to reach maturity and aged well in bottles, where they gained further quality.
The best plots of vineyards across the region's hills and valleys
(V.Rendu, Ampélographie française, Paris, 1857)
Barrels, known locally in Aube as Ricetons, held between 215 and 225 liters. The best wines came from the hills of La Forêt and Violette, Tronchoy, Boudier, Chanzeux, Roties, Champlanche, and Chènepetot, as well as from Val-des-Riceys in Avirey and Balnot, and also Bagneux and Bragelogne.
Trade, Recognition, and Market Value
In the best years, vineyard owners exported first- and second-tier wines to Normandy, Picardy, Flanders, and Belgium through wholesale merchants.
The passe-tout-grain wines were destined for the Parisian market.
Common wines were rarely exported and were mostly consumed locally or in the northern Aube department.
Grey and rosé wines from Les Riceys once supported a thriving trade with Belgium and northern France, though only in great vintages—except for Normandy, where export activity persisted even in less favorable years.
In exceptional vintages, first-class wines sold for 180–200 francs per barrel, though the usual price ranged between 150 and 160 francs—unless overproduction drove the value down. Common wines sold for an average of 25 to 35 francs per barrel.
The wines of Les Riceys, rooted in noble grape heritage and crafted with exceptional care, have long embodied an understated excellence.
Though often classified alongside the wines of Lower Burgundy, their complexity, structure, and elegance warrant greater recognition.
From their distinguished terroir and historical cultivation to refined winemaking and consistent quality, the wines of Les Riceys remain a hidden treasure of Champagne’s southern frontier.
Source
A.Jullien, Topographie de tous les vignobles connus, Paris, 1832
Girault de Saint-Fargeau, Guide pittoresque du voyageur en France, t. 3, Paris, 1838
V.Rendu, Ampélographie française, Paris, 1857
TAG: LES RICEYS, CHAMPAGNE, AUBE WINES, ROSE DES RICEYS, COTEAUX CHAMPENOIS, VINEYARDS OF CHAMPAGNE, HISTORICAL WINE PRODUCTION, WINE TRADE, RICETONS, FRENCH GRAPE VARIETIES
