De Barfontarc

De Barfontarc is not a classic family estate but a cooperative. In 1962 around fifty growers from Baroville, Fontaine and Arconville in the Côte des Bar decided to pool their resources and set up a cooperative so that they could organise the pressing together. The Coopérative de la Région de Baroville was founded on 17 February 1962. The brand name is made up of the first syllables of the three founding villages.

From press house to own brand

At first the cooperative was purely a pressing centre, then it developed its own champagne brand. Today it has 54 members, 127 hectares of vineyard and 19 employees. The house's homepage speaks of around 130 hectares. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are grown. Christophe Jeanny, grandson of a founder, is the cooperative's fourth president. Olivier Martin has run it as director since 1998.

The house sells 240,000 bottles under its own name in more than 15 countries. The cooperative is ISO 9001 certified. 80 per cent of the inputs used are VDC certified, the standard for sustainable viticulture in Champagne.

The cuvées

The range is divided into core cuvées and signature wines. The Essentielles include Héritage Brut, Héritage Demi-Sec, Caractère Blanc de Noirs, Caractère Rosé, Caractère Blanc de Blancs and Sainte Germaine. The signature wines are La Vigne au Roy, Derrière le Moulin, Les Chênies and Un Voyage dans nos Coteaux. The Héritage Brut is a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and works well as an aperitif. The Caractère Rosé achieved the top score in its category at the Decanter competition. There are also specialities such as Ratafia Champenois and Coteaux Champenois Rouge.

Visit and tasting

The house offers a tour of the facilities lasting about 45 minutes, with a tasting of three cuvées. It also has several wine tourism offers, reception rooms and a three-ear gîte. The programme includes events such as the Randonnée de Barfontarc. It is open Monday to Saturday from 9am to 12 noon and from 1.30pm to 5.30pm. Booking ahead is recommended for tours.