Oger

Location

Oger lies on the Côte des Blancs in the Marne département, in the Grand Est region, right on the Route touristique du champagne. Since 1 January 2018 the village has formed the commune of Blancs-Coteaux together with Gionges, Vertus and Voipreux. Oger lives on as a village with its own identity, its own church tower and its own growers. The inhabitants call themselves Ogiats and Ogiates. West of the village stretches the forest of Oger. It is home to the national nature reserve "pâtis d'Oger et du Mesnil-sur-Oger", which Oger shares with its famous neighbour Le Mesnil.

Viticulture

Oger is classified as Grand Cru, which places it in the top tier of Champagne's vineyard sites. The Côte des Blancs takes its name from the white grape variety Chardonnay, which sets the tone here. Accordingly, the wines from Oger are mostly blanc de blancs, that is, champagnes made from Chardonnay alone. Among the Grand Cru villages of the Côte, they are often considered particularly full-bodied and ripe, with drive and depth. In the village you will find many growers who sell their champagne themselves. A visit to the producer is therefore worth more than a glance at a label on a shelf.

“Since 1 January 2018 the village has formed the commune of Blancs-Coteaux together with Gionges, Vertus and Voipreux.

History

The village name is already documented in 1062 as "Ogerium" and changed several times over the centuries. In the First World War, at the end of August and the beginning of September 1914, French troops first passed through Oger as they fled the advancing German forces. After the Battle of the Marne, the German troops came through once more in retreat, pursued by French forces. Léon Bourgeois, who had been President of the Conseil and had received the Nobel Peace Prize, died at the Château d'Oger in 1925. The resistance fighter Yvette Lundy (1916 to 2019) came from the village.

Pol Roger Champagner

Sights

• The church of Saint-Laurent from the 12th century, with a Romanesque bell tower and a Gothic chancel with a flat east end. The stained-glass windows were made by the glass painter Gustave Bourgeois.
• The Museum of Traditions, Love and Champagne, which is devoted to wedding customs in 19th-century France.
• Fountains and wash-houses in the village scene.
• Two circular walks, a flower tour and a history tour.

Oger holds four flowers in the Villages fleuris competition and won the gold medal of the European competition in Győr, Hungary, in 2005. It is no longer counted among the "Plus Beaux Villages de France". The tourist information office is open from June to September. For overnight stays there are gîtes and chambres d'hôtes, so you can plan your tastings with the growers without hurrying.