Champagne "Yellow Label", Veuve Clicquot, FR, NV

Madame Clicquot was born in Reims in 1777. As the daughter of Baron Nicolas Ponsardin, her social standing allowed her to obtain an excellent education, founded upon the traditional morals and values of the time.
In 1798 she married François Clicquot, son to the founder of the Maison Clicquot. François shared his passion and knowledge for champagne creation and distribution with his young wife. It was because she had spent this time at his side that Madame Clicquot was able to take the reins of the family house after the untimely death of François in 1805.
In an era when women were excluded from the business world, she dared to assume the head of the company, a role she undertook with passion and determination. Madame Clicquot's character might be summarized with two words: audacious and intelligent.

She would seize each new opportunity that arose, willing to take risks, and as such she was able to expand her business to all four corners of the world. Uncompromising when it came to the quality of her wines, she perfected new techniques of production. She invented the "table de remuage" (riddling table) to clarify champagne, and innovated the very first blend of rosé champagne. Within just a few years she made her name into a brand of excellence, a name today renowned throughout the world. Even then, her peers recognized her formidable contributions, and referred to her as the "Grande Dame" of Champagne.