News
Lanson embarks on restoration of 200,000 bottles spanning more than a century of vintages
The Champagne house Lanson has announced a restoration project encompassing 200,000 bottles from historic vintages, with the oldest dating back to 1904.
What happened
Lanson, the Champagne house based in France, has announced a restoration project involving 200,000 bottles drawn from historic vintages. The collection extends back to at least 1904, making it one of the most expansive archival undertakings of its kind in the region. The project has been described as the work of a lifetime.
Why it matters
The scale of this endeavour is considerable. Restoring a collection of this magnitude — a quarter of a million bottles spanning well over a century — demands both technical expertise and an extraordinary commitment of resources. Aged champagne presents particular preservation challenges: corks deteriorate, labels fade, and the wines themselves require careful assessment before any remedial work can begin. That Lanson is undertaking this at such volume speaks to the significance the house places on its historical archive.
Beyond the practical challenges, the project draws attention to the broader question of how Champagne's established houses steward their oldest stocks. These bottles represent not merely commercial assets but a living record of the region's winemaking across generations, encompassing harvests from the early twentieth century through to more recent decades.
Context
Lanson is among the historic houses of Champagne, a region in north-eastern France whose sparkling wines have long been regarded as benchmarks of the category. The house's archive, with vintages reaching back to 1904, predates both World Wars and spans a period of profound change in viticulture, winemaking technology, and global commerce.
Restoration projects of this nature are uncommon in their ambition. While individual bottles or small parcels of aged champagne are occasionally reconditioned, a project running to 200,000 bottles is of an altogether different order. The announcement places Lanson's archival collection firmly in the public eye and raises the prospect of these historic vintages eventually reaching collectors and enthusiasts who might otherwise never encounter champagne of such age.