The Maison De Roval

Vision

The vocation of the Maison De Roval is to exclusively produce champagnes of exceptional quality, and they are rightfully proud of their Cuvées Spéciales. As innovators, they have positioned themselves as an aesthete of champagne.

Exception is the rule, excellence their passion, elegance their ideal and creativity their strength. The refinement and preciosity of Champagne De Roval are exalted by a bottle of fascinating effect, a union of dazzling gold and deep wine with the precious metals of its label, of effervescent bubbles with the diamonds in its medallion.

Philosophy

Based on traditional values founded on excellence, craftsmanship and ancestral knowledge, Maison De Roval redefines the magic of champagne through its unique and refined style. Champagne De Roval is a perfect treasure enclosed in a piece of jewellery.

Values

The Maison is firmly placed under the mark of an alliance –an alliance of terroirs, grape varieties, and flavours- but also an alliance of tradition and modernity, luxury and rigour.

The creation of De Roval's name came from another alliance: the first names of the two female members, Roxane and Valeria. Add to Roval its deep roots in the Champagne region and it becomes Royal.

Its emblem, the fleur de lys, highlights the royal prestige and imperial elegance of the Maison De Roval. Their champagne is a promise of happiness and the French 'art de vivre'. This pure jewel created with a timeless passion is enclosed in a beautiful black bottle enhanced with gold and diamonds that are set in a royal blue case. Every detail has been considered to express magnificence and perfection.

Creation of De Roval

The start of a friendship

Maison De Roval was the result of an intense friendship between two men and two women who shared the same passion: prestigious craftsmanship. Pioneers and connoisseurs of high-quality watches and fine wines, they had an ambition to create an exceptional champagne: a subtle alliance between œnology and jewellery.

A unique and innovative champagne, which faithfully observes the champenoise tradition.

The meeting

Creativity, enthusiasm and conviction are not enough in themselves to create an exceptional Champagne. Many years of patient research and visits throughout the length and breadth of Champagne resulted in a decisive meeting with Reynald Breton, the head of the Champagne Breton fils family domaine in Congy. He is a wine-grower who loves his work, is driven by a profound sense of excellence and boasts tried and tested know-how: in other words, he is passionate about Champagne and in perfect harmony with the founders of the Maison De Roval.

Designing an exceptional champagne

After many years of maturing in the cellars of Maison Champagne Breton fils, the Special Vintages of Champagne De Roval finally see the light of day. Their golden effervescence reflects the preparation secrets of the cellar master. This perfect harmony and balance of flavours are the result of extensive research, calling on the accumulated expertise of the Breton family throughout the generations.

The creation of a unique bottle

A prestigious champagne lovingly and expertly raised by a traditional winemaker just had to be in a unique and sublime bottle, a true piece of jewellery: black and full of mystery, from which, as if by magic, a tender gold fleur de lys seems to emerge set off with five diamonds, crowned with a muselet formed of two carved fleur de lys. The sheen of the gold again matches these jewels on a sumptuous and finely worked label created by artisan jewellers.

Familial domain

Tucked between the Côte des Blancs and the Coteau des Sézannais, the family domaine of Champagne Breton fils, which has been located in Congy since 1952, covers some 17,000 m2. Built up throughout the generations, the reputation for excellence and rigour of this family business stretches far beyond its frontiers. Highly esteemed in professional circles, Champagne Breton fils has been awarded several medals at prestigious competitions.

A rich and varied terroir

A typical Champagne De Roval expresses itself through the broad complexity of the subtle assembly of its component parts. Its rich bouquets are the result of wise acquisitions of vines located in 11 communes in two prestigious Champagne regions: the Côte des Blancs and the Vallée de la Marne.
Maison De Roval boasts 17 hectares of wines that grow strongly in this royal land. On its slopes and in its valleys the Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier languish and grow before finally coming together in the cellars.

Well thought out wine growing

Well thought out wine-growing has its roots in modern times and requires a commitment to preserving as far as one can the heritage that is represented by the land, water and air. In the Maison De Roval, every act is mirrored by its consequences for the environment. The vines are carefully tended to throughout the year, in order to ensure that an exceptional grape is produced.

The Grower-Handler label

In order to achieve this level of perfection, Maison De Roval had no option other than to associate with a Grower-Handler, an artisan grower who oversees the entire production chain from the raw material (the grape) to the finished product (the champagne). His expertise guarantees quality, because he knows his land, he pampers his vines and grapes and manages the harvest, vinification and assemblies. It is he who oversees the harmonious ageing of the nectars.

Expertise and secrets known only to the inner circle

From generation to generation, the expertise and sacred flame of the Breton family have been handed down, developed and enriched. Its passion draws its inspiration from the very heart of the noble champenoise traditions.

Artisan traditions

Nothing surpasses the delicacy, sensitivity and perception of the human hand! Manual work is the preferred way of ensuring the finesse of Champagnes De Roval. Taking care of the wine when rotating the bottles, as well as during the harvest, human knowledge and expertise are expressed through the sensitivity of human hands. This attachment to artisan traditions is reflected in the design of the bottle.

An exceptional Champagne

Special Vintages

Champagnes De Roval give center stage to the precious Chardonnay that provides a balanced, full and powerful wine with complex flavours. For its Blancs de Blancs, De Roval assembles growths (Chardonnay) from the same year that come exclusively from the mosaic that is the land of the Breton domaine, the characteristics of which are accentuated by the cellar master. Its rosé, however, is the result of a subtle mixture of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
Only exceptional grapes are used to create the Special Vintages of the Maison De Roval.
The magnificent cellars of the Breton domaine, carved into the chalk, provide ideal conditions in terms of temperature and hygrometry to ensure the harmonious maturing of the wines.
De Roval champagnes are made in accordance with the secular and secret rules and traditions of the artisan champagne method.

A characteristic style

A De Roval champagne is characterised by its rare elegance. Its bottle is a delicate piece of jewellery that gives off golden splinters of life everywhere. Its nectar shines in its pure gold livery, with fine strips of adamantine powder turning summersaults and generous, extra-fine bubbles providing proof of a long ageing process. Finally, the quintessence of its flavours burst and linger in the mouth. The magic of the champagne is expressed in all its splendour.

An exclusive range

De Roval champagnes are found in a range of Special Vintages of elegant maturity:

  • The Brut, a Blanc de Blancs created from Chardonnay grapes from a single year;
  • The Millésime 2003, an exceptional Blanc de Blancs;
  • The Rosé, a delicate mixture of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.

For the Special Vintages, the supreme quality of the grapes, patiently grown in the vineyards of the Breton domaine, alongside an ideal ageing process in the cool chalky cellars, means that a dry champagne can be created with a very small amount of liqueur being added as a top-up.

A unique bottle

Each bottle is a unique work of art, manufactured by craftsmen at the very peak of their art. The fleur de lys, the emblem of the Maison De Roval, tumbles in a golden waterfall, from the finely chiselled cap to the divinely worked label, including the medallion attached to the collar, adorned with five diamonds. The bottle is delicately covered in deep jet black, darkly gleaming and transcending the glistening of the diamonds and the gold.
The refined engraved and panelled gold label is surprising in terms of its sobriety – one name, one wine, one emblem – whilst enchanting by the elegance of the volutes that remind one of the arcs of fine champagne bubbles.
The cap is uniquely original and proudly bears two round fleurs de lys united around the cork.
The medallion is a jewel, drawing the eye to its sheen and gracious forms. Perfectly polished, its relief is set off by the light, and its graceful and round form help set off the five precious diamonds that symbolise the five associates of the Maison De Roval.
Subtle nuances are to be found in the apparel that adorns each Special Vintage: the Brut is characterised by yellow, the Millésime underlined in black and the Rosé adorned in pink gold.

The Production

Harvest

Only grapes from the best, magnificently exposed vines are used to produce a De Roval champagne. Each ripened grape is full of sun and hand-picked during the harvest.

Pressing

Extracting the juice is a very delicate task and huge care is taken with each grape that must softly burst in order to avoid any alteration to the quintessential aroma of the must.

Vinification

During the initial alcoholic fermentation that is the result of the sugars fermenting, the must in the tanks turns into wine when subjected to the action of natural yeast, resulting in aromas of flowers and fruits.
The cellar master leaves the wine to undergo a malolactic fermentation, to achieve its delicate subtlety.

Clarification

The manual extraction of the last yeast and solid particles means that the wines’ clean aromatics can be restored.

Mixing

The true signature of the Maison De Roval, and a crucial and basic stage in each vintage, with ancestral expertise being decisive: the inheritance and jealously guarding of the secrets of mixing from his forebears help guide the cellar master when harmonising the types of grapes from very different soils. This mixing will produce an exceptional champagne, a marriage of tranquil wines with complementary flavours.

Drawing and foaming

The expertly mixed wine is then bottled. The cellar master adds his drawing liqueur (an exclusive mixture of wine, sugar and yeast) that will cause the second alcoholic fermentation. The mystery of champagne occurs, and the effervescence is born: the foaming.

Ageing

The cellars of the Breton fils domaine, cut into the chalk, extend over some 1200 m2. They provide De Roval Champagnes with the ideal conditions for the harmonious ageing process in a calm darkness, thanks to their constant natural temperature and their raised hygrometry.
In the coolness of the chalk, with the underground tunnels patiently hollowed out by hand, the bottles begin their slow maturing process. The champagnes develop their finesse and specific aromas and reach full maturity over the years.

Turning

The matured champagne is placed on racks, where, once a month, each bottle will be turned by hand. Know-how handed down from ancestors, a precise and delicate tap by the cellar man and the turning helps the lees collect in the neck of the bottle. Over several weeks, each bottle will be turned to stop the deposits sticking. Alongside this, the angle of inclination of the bottles will be gradually increased. At the end of the turning process, the bottles will be upside down.

Necking

Volley necking is carried out on De Roval champagnes. The natural pressure of the carbon gas is used to remove deposits as this technique does not require the wine to be prepared beforehand.

Dosing

This operation also calls on the cellar master’s expertise. To give the champagne its unique character and harmonious flavour, he adds a dosing liqueur, developed according to a family recipe that is a closely guarded secret.

Dressing

The cork finishes off the champagne and then the cap is attached. For a De Roval champagne, the cap is a finely cut golden jewel that bears the emblem of the House, the precious fleur de lys.
Each bottle is hand-painted. An artisan jeweller then attaches its well-worked label and its medallion in the form of a fleur de lys adorned with diamonds. To complete the masterpiece, a royal blue presentation case, decorated with the House’s emblem, embraces the precious nectar from Champagne that has been so lovingly created.