The Ruinart story begins not with Nicolas, but with his uncle Dom Thierry Ruinart, a Benedictine monk whose scholarly travels revealed sparkling wine's growing popularity among European aristocracy. In the early 1700s, Dom Thierry shared his nephew his conviction that this effervescent wine represented commerce's future. Nicolas, a successful cloth merchant, waited until royal permission allowed Champagne transport by bottle rather than barrel before founding his house in 1729. This patience proved wise—Ruinart quickly became the preferred Champagne of European courts, its reputation built on the monk's insight and the merchant's commercial acumen.
The art of chardonnay, preserved through three centuries in the world's deepest crayères.
Ruinart's philosophy centers on chardonnay's ability to express terroir with transparent elegance. Their approach favors finesse over power, seeking wines that whisper rather than shout. The house maintains that chardonnay, when handled with restraint, reveals Champagne's most aristocratic character. This translates to minimal intervention winemaking, extended lees aging in their historic crayères, and blending that emphasizes harmony over complexity. Each wine reflects not just the grape, but the chalky subsoil that has sheltered their wines for three centuries.
Not sure where to start? The quiz takes four minutes and ends with a specific bottle recommendation.
Find your Champagne moment →Pure chardonnay precision with white peach flesh giving way to mineral tension. The mousse carries chalky brightness that coats the mid-palate, finishing with citrus pith and wet stone clarity.
Concentrated chardonnay from premier and grand cru sites. Honeyed texture meets saline minerality, the bubbles fine enough to seem almost still. Golden apple and hazelnut depth with a finish that recalls wet limestone after rain.
Descend into UNESCO-listed crayères carved by Romans in the 1st century, where bottles age in galleries extending 38 meters underground. The tour includes tasting in chambers where temperature hasn't varied in 2,000 years.
4 Rue des Crayères, 51100 Reims
Les Crayères — A château hotel literally built above champagne cellars, with Michelin-starred dining and gardens designed for post-tasting contemplation.