May 24, by jockovino. It seems that when the Champenois have not been fighting the Romans or the Germans, they have often turned on themselves, perhaps just for practice. The province and viticole of Champagne has historically been divided into two sectors. The rivalries and conflict between the Marne and the Aube have deep historical roots that continue into the present. For at least the past years, the casus belli has been economic conflict arising from the highly lucrative Champagne trade.
Although both the Marne and Aube grow grapes and make Champagne, the two rivals have competed to dominate, each trying to marginalize the other. To the extent that the Marne has become more dominant than the Aube since the Middle Ages, and Reims grown ascendant over Troyes, the northerners have been positioned to define the terms of conflict.
In the first part of the twentieth century, they prevailed upon the central authorities in Paris to designate the Marne as the premier part Champagne and to denigrate the Aube as secondary. This prompted violent protest in the Aube which came very close to open insurrection in , diverted only by the outbreak of the First World War. Although the southerners succeeded after the War in overturning their disparaging second class status, the damage had largely been done:, and the Aube has since played a decisively secondary role in the Champagne trade.
While Aube grapes have consistently formed an essential part of the blends, the Marne has garnered all the glory. The best-rated vineyards and most powerful Champagne houses have invariably been situated in the north. Even today when most oenophiles think of fine Champagne, it is almost invariably from the Marne. The worm has begun to turn, however, and serious wine lovers increasingly focus on the Aube.
One of the reasons for this change is that the very success of the Marne has all too often led to an inflexible embrace of traditional practices and a resistance to innovation and creativity. Vignerons in the Aube, in contrast, unfettered by the shackles of their past, have been free to experiment and try new approaches. Although the Aube is situated halfway between Beaune and Reims, Aubois vignerons incline more towards their brethren in Burgundy by reason both of geographical influences and personal chemistry.
