AR Lenoble is one of the rare producers in Champagne that has been consistently family-owned and entirely independent since the very beginning. Sister-and-brother owners Anne and Antoine Malassagne are the great-grandchildren of Armand-Raphaël Graser. They took over in 1993 from their father and in just over twenty years, they have quietly yet confidently transformed AR Lenoble into one of the jewels of the Champagne region. Lots of producers talk about the involvement of certain family members but downplay the investors and shareholders actually running the company. On the other hand, AR Lenoble is entirely independent, meaning we only answer to ourselves. We are not in any rush to release our wines too early before they are ready AR Lenoble believes very strongly in privileging the characteristic expression of fruit from its own vineyards located in three prime locations in Champagne. AR Lenoble owns 10 hectares in the Grand Cru village of Chouilly, 6 hectares in the Premier Cru village of Bisseuil and 2.5 hectares in Bisseuil, located 6 kilometres from Epernay in the Marne Valley adjacent to Cumières. AR Lenoble was the second house in Champagne to be awarded the “Haute Valeur Environnementale” certification (as part of a legal measure implemented under French law in 2007 to encourage sustainable development. After more than 20 years of environmentally-friendly procedures put in place on the estate, AR Lenoble was recognized for its zero use of chemical fertilisers, practically zero use of weed killer, drastic limits on the use of phytosanitary inputs to control mildew and powdery mildew in the vineyard, and particular attention to biodiversity and enhancement of the vineyard with hedgerows, orchards, embankments, trees and low walls Biodiversity is extremely important to us at AR Lenoble. The vineyards are also home to a cluster of beehives from which we make a limited amount of honey each year.