Only 24 champagne brands are officially categorized as Grandes Marques, and they represent some of the most famous champagne makers, many of which you will probably recognize.
Below is the full list of all Champagne Grandes Marques.
As I cover in more detail in other related articles, keep in mind that just because a brand is on this Grande Marque Champagne list doesn’t mean their wine is necessarily better than smaller producers. But, on balance, these brands are generally very well known for good reason.
Complete Grande Marque Champagne List:
Here’s a full list of Les Grandes Marques de Champagne, listed alphabetically:
- Billecart-Salmon (one of our staff favorites)
- Bollinger (one of our staff favorites)
- Canard-Duchêne
- Charles Heidsieck
- Deutz
- Dom Perignon (owned by Moët & Chandon, but managed and branded as a separate house)
- Drappier
- Duval–Leroy
- Gosset
- Heidsieck and Co. Monopole
- Henriot
- Joseph Perrier
- Krug
- Lanson
- Laurent–Perrier
- Louis Roederer
- Mercier
- Moët & Chandon
- Mumm
- Perrier-Jouët
- Piper-Heidsieck
- Pol Roger
- Pommery
- Ruinart (one of our staff favorites)
- Taittinger
- Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin
- Vranken
As your humble editor, I’ve taken the liberty of highlighting some of our staff’s consistent favorite brands in the list above, although I recognize there are many other great champagne wines to choose from here.
How Many Grande Marque Champagne Houses Are There?
Only 24 brands are categorized as Grande Marque, and they represent some of the most famous champagne makers in the sparkling wine sector.
The term Grande Marque came to describe champagne produced by a small number of large and prestigious houses located in the Champagne region of France.
Many of these houses have been making champagne for centuries, and overall their wines tend to be recognized for consistency, quality, and aging potential.
What is a Grande Marque Champagne?
A Grande Marque Champagne is a champagne made by one of the major champagne houses, or Grandes Maisons, that have built a great brand and been historically designated as Grandes Marques, or “big brands” in French.
The collection of houses which are considered Les Grandes Marques are relatively large champagne producers with globally known brands. They typically have a reputation for quality in the champagne industry, but the term grande marque doesn’t really mean these Champagnes have higher quality compared to other smaller champagne producers. The grapes, production methods, and taste profile of a grande marque label are not different than other champagnes.
While some of these houses might claim to have unyielding customer loyalty or an infallible reputation, the main thing that they all have in common is a long history of producing and selling champagne.
In reality, the designation of a Grande Marque House represents international brand awareness as opposed to any specific technical definition or quality standard.
You can learn more about the criteria for and background for what makes a grande marque champagne here.
Visiting the Champagne Grandes Marques:
One advantage to being a large producer with more sales, more staff, and a bigger budget is that many of the Champagne Grandes Marques listed above are able to host visitors for a tasting and/or tour.
Not all of the producers listed above offer public tours, but many do. Trust me, it’s a super memorable experience to drink champagne in one of their famous cellars or caves, and even watch a champagne bottle come off the production line if they are operating during your visit.
To learn more about the best champagne champagne tours, check out our related article here.
