Gosset

Gosset traces its origins to 1584, when Pierre Gosset, Lord and Alderman of Aÿ, set up a négociant business. That year he made still wines, most of them red, from grapes grown in his own vineyards. The house names Jean Gosset (1484-1556), Lord of Aÿ and Mareuil, as the first official ancestor in the family line, and sixteen generations of direct lineage continued the work in Aÿ-Champagne. In 1760 the house first used the antique bottle that became its emblem, named for the antique-glass colour of its glass. Suzanne Gosset (1885-1970), president of Maison Gosset from 1955 to 1965, persuaded those around her to present the house rosé in transparent glass; in the house's own account, in 1947 it became the first rosé Champagne presented in a clear bottle. Toward the end of 1993 Gosset became part of the family-owned Renaud-Cointreau group, and Jean-Pierre Cointreau signs the house's January 2024 sustainability statement as Chairman.

• 1584: Pierre Gosset sets up a négociant business in Aÿ
• 1760: first use of the antique bottle, the house emblem
• 1947: the house rosé presented in a clear bottle, at Suzanne Gosset's urging
• Late 1993: Gosset joins the family-owned Renaud-Cointreau group
• 2009: purchase of a historic 2-hectare domaine in Épernay, opened to the public in July 2021

Odilon de Varine is Gosset's cellar master (chef de caves) and its deputy general manager. He joined Gosset in 2006, and his earlier posts include cellar master at Champagne Henriot. He succeeded Jean-Pierre Mareigner, who had been Gosset's cellar master for more than 30 years. The house keeps Mareigner's maxim: "At Gosset, we produce a wine first and foremost, the bubbles only add to its beauty."

• Odilon de Varine: cellar master and deputy general manager
• Joined Gosset in 2006; earlier cellar master at Champagne Henriot
• Predecessor: Jean-Pierre Mareigner, Gosset's cellar master for more than 30 years
• Jean-Pierre Cointreau: Chairman (January 2024)

Gosset's wines draw on carefully selected grapes grown in 140 hectares of vines across the whole of the Champagne region, which give the house a large palette of crus (villages) to work with. Its grape supply rests on partnerships with 160 winegrowing families, some of whom have worked with the house for several generations, under multi-year contracts of five years. Gosset is a standing member of the Comité Champagne (CIVC). Maison Gosset places its roots in Pinot Noir from Aÿ. For the Grand Blanc de Blancs, Chardonnays are selected from crus where the chalk breaks through to the surface in the Montagne de Reims, the Vallée de la Marne and the Côte des Blancs.

• 140 hectares of vines across the Champagne region supply the house
• Partnerships with 160 winegrowing families on multi-year contracts of five years
• Grande Réserve villages include Ambonnay, Avize, Aÿ, Bouzy, Cumières and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger
• Standing member of the Comité Champagne (CIVC)

Gosset blocks malolactic fermentation, so its Champagnes retain their malic acid; Celebris 2008, like all Gosset Champagnes, went through no malolactic fermentation. The house credits a vinification process that preserves the natural freshness of the fruit, and it ages its wines on their lees for an average of four years. The Grande Réserve, Grand Rosé and Grand Blanc de Blancs are bottled at the end of the spring following the harvest and aged at least four years in the cellars; Gosset Celebris Vintage 2012 was aged at least ten. After disgorgement the bottles return to the cellars to rest for at least six months (nine for Celebris Vintage 2012) so the wine can assimilate the dosage. Rosés follow a longstanding house tradition of double blending: a red blended wine is made first and then complements the white blend. Gosset frames its style as "a great mineral freshness that precedes a deep vinosity."

• No malolactic fermentation: the malic acid is retained
• Lees ageing averages four years
• Minimum cellar ageing: four years for the Grande Réserve, Grand Rosé and Grand Blanc de Blancs; ten years for Celebris Vintage 2012
• Rosé by double blending; the Grand Rosé carries 5-9% red wine from Cumières, Louvois and Vertus

The Grande Réserve Brut is the house's signature Champagne: a predominantly Pinot Noir blend (Pinot Noir 40-45%, Chardonnay 30-35%, Meunier 20-24%) with a dosage of 6 to 8 g/l. The Grand Rosé Brut is Chardonnay-led (40-48%), with Pinot Noir, Meunier and 5-9% red wine. The Grand Blanc de Blancs, 100% Chardonnay, was first made in 2011. The Zéro Dosage, the house's first, is based on the 2013 harvest (Chardonnay 62%, Pinot Noir 38%) with no dosage liqueur added after disgorgement. The Grand Millésime 2016 is 61% Chardonnay and 39% Pinot Noir with a dosage of 4 g/l. Longer-aged cuvées include the 12 ans de cave a minima Rosé, the house's first Compte d'âge rosé, the 21 ans de cave a minima, and the Petite Douceur Rosé, aged at least 11 years in the cellars and finished with an extra-dry dosage. The Cuvée Suzanne Gosset, a rosé in a transparent bottle, honours Suzanne Gosset.

• Gosset Celebris: first vintage 1988
• Celebris Vintage 2012: the ninth Gosset Celebris in 35 years; 70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir; dosage 5.5 g/l
• Celebris Blanc de Blancs 2012: the house's first vintage Blanc de Blancs, a limited edition of 15,000 bottles
• Celebris Rosé 2009: the sixth Celebris Rosé, after 1995, 1998, 2003, 2007 and 2008

To keep pace with its growth, Gosset bought a historic 2-hectare domaine in Épernay in 2009 and opened it to the public in July 2021. The cellars were carved into the chalk in the 19th century and extend over 1.7 km beneath the domaine. The house's head office is at 12 rue Godart Roger in Épernay. The wooded park, classified by the town of Épernay, is a stage on the pollinator route of the town's Bee Trail project, with beehives in the old greenhouse.

• Historic 2-hectare domaine in Épernay, bought 2009, open to the public since July 2021
• Cellars carved into the chalk in the 19th century, extending over 1.7 km
• Head office: 12 rue Godart Roger, Épernay

Primary sources (producer's own site): https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/gosset-house/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/the-domain/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/charte-dexcellence/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/our-champagne-wines/cuvee-suzanne-gosset/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/our-champagne-wines/12-ans-de-cave-a-minima-rose/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/our-champagne-wines/gosset-21-ans-de-cave-a-minima/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/our-champagne-wines/gosset-petite-douceur-rose/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/gosset-celebris/gosset-celebris-blanc-de-blancs-2012/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/gosset-celebris/gosset-celebris-rose-2009/, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/en/legal-notice-tou/, and the house's documents (PDF): https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1048/rse_gosset_en.pdf, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1029/fc_gosset_grandereserve-_en_g.pdf, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1028/fc_gosset_grandrose-_en_g.pdf, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1030/fc_gosset_grandblancdeblancs-en_g.pdf, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1089/fc_grandmillesime2016_en.pdf, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1084/fc_gosset_celebrisvintage2012_en.pdf, https://www.champagne-gosset.com/site/assets/files/1106/fc_gosset_zerodosage_en_2025-1.pdf. Secondary sources: The Drinks Business (Sarah Neish, 25 May 2022), https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2022/05/champagne-gosset-tears-up-the-rulebook-with-its-celebris-2008/; The Drinks Business (Patrick Schmitt, 16 October 2017), https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2017/10/viticulture-not-climate-is-changing-champagne/; Decanter (1 July 2016), https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/new-gosset-cellar-master-311627/. Last verified 2026-10-21. Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs.