Draft:Champagne Telmont

Champagne Telmont is a century-old family champagne house.. , founded in 1912 in Damery, near Epernay. The house produces a range of champagnes which possess the designation Champagne AOC and Coteaux Champenois AOC. Since October 2020, the house is part of the Rémy Cointreau Group, which acquired a majority stake in Champagne Telmont.

Foundation
After the 1911 Champagne Riots, wine-grower Henri Lhôpital stopped supplying grapes to local champagne houses and in 1912, began to produce his own wine and set the foundation for what is today Champagne Telmont.

In 1914, during the first World War, Henri Lhôpital joined the ranks of the French army.

Henri died in 1937 and his son, André Lhôpital, became Cellar Master and head of the champagne house. During the Second World War, André was called in by the army. He joined the second regiment of the ‘Cuirassiers’, one of the oldest surviving cavalry regiment in the French Army. After the war, André Lhôpital returned to Champagne, where his wife Mathilde had kept the champagne house and the family café, “Café du Commerce”, in Damery, afloat. André got back to work to develop his father’s brand and baptised the champagne house : ‘J. de Telmont’ in 1947, inspired by the name of one of the family’s vineyard parcels. Serge, André and Mathilde’s son, interrupted his studies and returned to work alongside his parents. With his son Serge, André expanded the family estate to 22 hectares and diversified the J. de Telmont range. Mathilde and her daughter-in-law Lucette were also very involved in all aspects of the house, from bottle labelling to managing the commercial transactions and financials.

In 1968, the family moved the headquarters of J. de Telmont to 1 Avenue de Champagne the current premises in Damery, near Epernay. In 1983, André passed the reins of J. de Telmont to his son Serge. André died in 1997.

Serge got involved in local affairs and occupied the role of Deputy Mayor of Damery from 1971 to 1983 and Mayor of Damery from 1983 to 1989. In 1999, Serge handed the management of the house over to his two children, Bertrand Lhôpital, who became the Cellar Master and head of the champagne house, and Pascale, who had already been involved in the family business since 1983. Bertrand began the organic conversion of their vineyard in 2014 and received his first organic certification for the J. de Telmont-owned parcels in 2017

In October 2020, French family-owned spirits group Remy Cointreau became the majority shareholder of the house and largely support the organic conversion plans for the vineyards, along with Bertrand Lhôpital who remained on board as Cellar Master and Head of Viticulture of Telmont. Today, 70% of Telmont estate’s and partners are certified in organic agriculture. The House’s aim is to convert 100% of the Telmont estate by 2025 and targets the conversion to organic agriculture of all its winegrower partners, Le "Collectif De La Terre" by 2031.

In February 2022, actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio acquired a minority stake in Champagne Telmont



"Gloire au Champagne"
Henri Lhôpital was involved in the 1911 champagne riots. The riots started when local winegrowers revolted against champagne houses who wished to source their grapes outside of the champagne region, after their vineyards had been ravaged by phylloxera. Henri wrote the anthem of the riots, “Gloire au Champagne”, with the aim of enjoining regional winemakers and traders to maintain their existing traditional production habits, so that champagne would uphold its high standards of quality. . The cantata was performed during a concert in Damery in April 1992, to commemorate the painful moments of the beginning of the century.

The Knight’s Helm
The helm is the chosen logo of the house accompanied by the motto “Nec Pluribus Impar” (‘like no other’). The knight’s helm was replicated exactly from the coat of arms of André Lhôpital’s battalion during World War II, "Le second régiment de cuirassiers" and became the distinctive emblem of the house; chosen as a tribute to André’s legacy and a reminder of the house values: courage, loyalty, and humility.

Rémy Cointreau Acquisition
In October 2020, the French, family-owned spirits group Remy Cointreau acquired a majority stake in J. de Telmont. The arrival of the Rémy Cointreau group marked a new starting point for the house. Maison Telmont’s sustainability commitments are part of the Rémy Cointreau’s « Sustainable Exception » roadmap.

Telmont is currently managed by Ludovic du Plessis, formerly Executive Director of cognac house LOUIS XIII (owned by Rémy Cointreau) for six years. He is currently President of Telmont as an intrapreneur within the Rémy Cointreau group. The production is overseen by Bertrand Lhôpital, fourth generation of the founding family, as Head of Viticulture and Cellar Master of the House. The House was renamed Champagne Telmont in June 2021

In February 2022, actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio acquired a minority stake in Champagne Telmont

Organic conversion
As of 2024, 70% of the estate and partners hectares are under organic agriculture. The House’s aim is to convert 100% of all cultivated areas by 2031, including its partner winegrowers' "Le Collectif De La Terre.

"In the Name of Mother Nature"


In June of 2021, Champagne Telmont launched its sustainability program coined “In the Name of Mother Nature” in which the House outlined its environmental ambitions and commitments. The program is broken out into five principal pillars :


 * 1) Preservation of land and biodiversity
 * 2) * Planting shrubs and cover crop, soil analysis
 * 3) * Conversion to organic agriculture which means no herbicide, no synthetic pesticides, no synthetic fungicides and no chemical fertilizers
 * 4) Generalization of eco-conception
 * 5) * Elimination of the use of giftboxes, which reduce the CO₂ emissions of each bottle by 8 %.
 * 6) * Ceased the production of transparent bottles, to use only green champagne bottles, made of 87% recycled glass, for the whole range.
 * 7) * Developped and released in 2022 the lightest bottle of champagne (800g) in partnership with Verallia.
 * 8) 100% Renewable Energy, with tractors powered by biofuel.
 * 9) Evolution of logistics chain to limit greenhouse gases, zero air freight policy in the manufacturing processes of Champagne Telmont, using wind-powered Neoline ships from 2025, and prioritizing local suppliers for all product development and materials purchases.
 * 10) Transparency: front label which lists all components of the champagne making process

The Vineyard
Stretching across over 25 hectares, the Telmont vineyard includes eight crus, on the right-bank of the Marne River, mainly on clay-limestone soil and the three main varieties of Champagne: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier.

The Winemaking Process
Bertrand Lhôpital is the current Cellar Master and Head of Viticulture of the House. Telmont wines are aged in stainless steel tanks, oak barrels, or foudres followed by a bottle ageing between 3 and 15 years depending on the cuvées, the house prefers longer ageing on lees. Traditional hand-riddling, ageing on natural cork and manual disgorgement are processes still in use for the House’s prestige cuvées.

The Wines
Champagne Telmont offers a current range divided into six categories: Réserve, Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs, Vinothèque, Confidential and Organic. Since 2021, Telmont revealed the future of the house with her first organic cuvée: Réserve de la Terre.

The house cuvées have received awards in international wine competitions.