Being the only vegan B&B in the region we were very honoured to be personally invited by Vegan Champagne Legret & Fils to come and visit their and winery!
We decided to close the B&B the evening before so we could leave bright and early. After packing our lunch we drove off to meet the Marketing manager Jennifer at the vineyard in Barbonne Fayel. It was a lovely drive with the sun shining, beautiful scenery and we were looking forward to finally meeting her.
We were picked up in the village by the owner Alain Legret himself and escorted to the vineyard where a delightful team of grape pickers were working really hard to get the harvest in.
After meeting the team we heard that Champagne Legret & Fils prefers to work with a small team of people that they can interact with, the old fashioned way, so the harvest is a nice experience for everyone.
Amongst other things this means they have breaks together, there is a very nice atmosphere and people get to know each other instead of picking grapes on the clock with a lot of stress surrounded by strangers they will never get to know.
After being explained what makes Champagne Legret & Fils stand out from all the other ‘vegan’ champagnes, like using only organic plant-based treatments, they are also in the process of becoming organically and ISO certified! Of course this is a long process with a lot of paperwork involved but in three years time Champagne Legret & Fils will most probably be one of a kind.
After tasting some of the Chardonnay grapes grown here we went to the winery in Talus-Saint-Prix where we received a personal guided journey from grape to Champagne and have been explained everything about the process from getting the juice from the grapes, the pressing, aging the grape juice in barrels or containers, the fermentation, bottling and ripening of the Champagne which, we found out during lunch with the family, is absolutely AMAZING!
After lunch we were shown around the grounds where we were introduced to the array of animals in their personal animal sanctuary.
A number of rescued chickens, pony’s and donkeys have found a forever home with this delightful vegan family.
There is love all around this family, their animals and their Champagne and it is definitely a MUST to visit them when you come and stay at our B&B!
Thank you Jennifer, Alain and Sandrine for a memorable and delightful day! Bisous!