What to drink for your vin d'honneur?

Updated on December 14, 2022

Are you about to celebrate the happiest day of your life? Congratulations! The vin d'honneur is the beginning of the festivities once your union is celebrated, so it must be festive and light. What could be better than bubbles to get things started?

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For a sparkling vin d'honneur, choose a winegrower's champagne

When it comes to bubbles, thechampagne is usually the first thing that comes to mind and it is often a very good choice. But for a wedding reception, you have to remember that you will have to buy a significant number of bottles and the bill can quickly soar depending on the type of champagne you choose.

Discover the winegrowers of the Champagne region.

To limit costs, the best idea is to choose champagnes from small producers. More accessible financially than those of the big houses and just as good, the champagnes of wine growers also have the advantage of presenting a great diversity.

Brut, demi-sec, rosé, blanc de blancs (champagnes made from vintages exclusively of chardonnay) or blanc de noirs (champagnes made from vintages exclusively of pinot noir and/or other grape varieties).Whatever your preference, you're likely to find a winemaker's champagne that will make you happy.

For more information, consult our tips to help you set your wedding wine budget

Rely on crémants and other sparkling wines for your wedding reception

If champagne is a good option for your wine of honor, you should know that in terms ofsparkling winesIf champagne is a good option for your wedding reception, you should know that when it comes to champagne, there are other alternatives that are just as seductive and often less expensive.

Why not try a nice crémant for example?CrémantsCrémants are made according to a method similar to the one used for champagnes, called "traditional method", but in other appellation areas and with other grape varieties. You will find delicious crémants at very good quality/price ratios in the Loire, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Alsace but also in the Jura.

If crémants don't appeal to you, you can also be tempted by other equally tasty sparkling wines, such asa Vouvrayeffervescent, a Clairette de Die, an ancestral method from Gaillac, or even a natural sparkling wine (or pet'nat) for a little touch of madness.

Whatever your choice, keep in mind that a quality sparkling wine made outside theChampagnewill always be a better option than a bad champagne.

The main thing is to select something you like and that is sufficiently federative (not too sweet and rather fresh).So before making your choice, don't hesitate to taste several different champagnes or sparkling wines. Taste them on their own, but also with the accompaniments you plan to serve during the vin d'honneur to make sure that the pairings work.

Looking for originality? Discover our article on alternatives to champagne.

Maïlys (VeryWineTrip) for Les Grappes