Dom Pérignon, the monk who is said to have invented Champagne, is buried at Hautvillers. The story is not quite true, since sparkling wine was being made long before him, but the truth is better in some ways. Dom Pierre Pérignon was cellarer at the Benedictine abbey here from 1668 until his death in 1715, and he is credited with refining the art of blending different grapes and making a better white wine from black grapes. The line about drinking the stars is a later invention, but nobody minds. His tomb lies in the abbey church, and the abbey itself now belongs to the Champagne house Moët & Chandon.
The village stands on a hillside above the Marne, between Épernay and Dizy, and everything about it is neat. Narrow streets climb between stone houses covered in vines, and the shop and restaurant signs are wrought-iron works of art, hanging from the walls like a sculpture gallery. A tiny village with such a vast reputation can feel crowded in high season, but most visitors are gentle ones, and on a quiet morning you can walk the lanes and hear nothing but birds and distant tractors. The church of Saint-Sindulphe is worth a visit, and the viewpoint at the edge of the village looks across the vineyards to the river.
The route to Hautvillers from Épernay climbs gently through vineyards on a narrow road with a handful of bends and a lot of grapevines at the edge of the tarmac. It is easy riding, and a good one for a slow afternoon, though be careful in the harvest season when trailers of grapes crowd the lanes, and mud from the vineyards can slick the road. The best seasons are spring and early autumn. The slope faces south, so it warms up quickly, and the vines turn gold and red in October.
The Marne valley below is a wide, calm river plain, and the chalk hillsides of the Côte des Blancs and the Montagne de Reims line the horizon. The soil is chalky and well drained, and the vines are mostly Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay, planted tightly and pruned low.
There is fuel in Épernay, about five kilometres away, and the Avenue de Champagne there is lined with famous houses offering cellar tours, some of which need booking ahead. In Hautvillers itself, a few small restaurants and a bakery are usually open. Save the glass for the end of the day, and perhaps buy a bottle from a small grower rather than the biggest names.