110 g less: with its lighter bottle, a Marne winemaker wants to revolutionize champagne

How much does a bottle of champagne weigh? Over the centuries, this weight has evolved. From 1.2 kg at the beginning of the 20th century, it was reduced to 900 g a century later. It must still maintain sufficient thickness to withstand the pressure of 6 bars exerted by carbon dioxide. The standard that all producers have now adopted, which displays 835 g on the scale, dates from 1994.

Since then, almost no one has really worked to make it lighter. Only Telmont carried out an experiment in 2022 to remove 35 g of glass. A year later, it announced the marketing of a batch of 30,000 lightweight bottles for 2026, after three years of aging in the cellar. Telmont, acclaimed by the actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who arrived a little earlier in the capital of the house, then displayed its avant-garde approach in terms of sustainable viticulture.

A few months before these bottles leave their cellar, another champagne house, Moussé, based in Cuisles (Marne), announces that it is embarking on the race to reduce weight and is preparing to market 137,000 bottles next summer. The thinning is much greater this time, with a bottle of only 725 g, or 110 g less than the standard.

10% less carbon emissions

This technological feat is the culmination of a reflection initiated in 2021 by winegrower Cédric Moussé. Ultimately, he hopes to see his innovation adopted by all Champagne stakeholders. “I already have winegrowers, cooperatives and merchants who want to test this bottle. It could be the basis of a new standard, the bottle of tomorrow,” he hopes.

Called “Light 26”, the bottle was developed using the cutting-edge technologies and know-how of the glassmaking company SaverGlass, based in Oise. It is part of a more global approach of the Moussé family house. A first carbon assessment in 2003 had already encouraged the young winemaker to change his practices in terms of working in the vineyard, with the widespread use of electric robots, the use of animal traction or even the installation of a paper cap, rather than metal, on the bottle necks.

“This new bottle could help reduce carbon emissions for the entire sector by 10%,” he estimates. It contains less glass and will be produced in a hybrid furnace. » With such a light weight and slightly reduced height, a semi-trailer could transport 5,148 more empty bottles, an increase of 20%.

The golden ratio to the rescue

On the technical side, Cédric Moussé was inspired by architecture and nature, referring to the golden ratio and the Fibonacci sequence to design this bottle. “We designed the bottle around the perfect egg which resists pressure,” says the winemaker. The upper curve will follow the Fibonacci sequence perfectly. We started with a 900 g bottle and determined the new height. It is exactly the same size as a bottle of Burgundy. That is to say 2.7 cm less than a traditional bottle. »

The “Light 26” calls into question the standardization of Champagne containers. However, until the 725 g bottle becomes increasingly widespread, we will have to wait a little longer. Making the bottle lighter is one of the objectives set out by the Champagne Committee, representing the profession, but within the framework of its “Net Zero Carbon” program, which has a horizon of… 2050. Currently, the weight of the bottle represents the primary source of greenhouse gas emissions from champagne.