14. The presentation

     This stage is the final touch before marketing.

     After their time in the cellars and the various processes of disgorgement, the bottles are humid. They are washed and dried before reaching the labelling line, where they receive the following additions:

* a sealing foil capsule (or "coiffe"), which covers the cork and part of the neck; * a neck-label, wrapped around, positioned at the base of the sealing capsule; * a label, even a back-label stuck to the sides of the bottle; * and sometimes a medallion or a strip-label.

     Adorned in this way, the more prestigious bottles are sometimes wrapped up in tissue paper or a sheet of cellophane, before being packed head to tail in cases or cartons of 6 to 12 units, destined for sale. They are then placed on pallets and held in place by a plastic shrink-wrap for sale in supermarkets. The bottles can also receive an overwrap in the form of a sleeve or a presentation box depending on the planned marketing operations.

Appendix: "A piece of History"

"The true "Champagne" is the drink of princes, living in courts, places of luxury. The labels displayed " cuvée impériale."
P. Hamp, Marée fraîche, vin de champagne, 1909.

     The creation of this now traditional presentation style has its origins in the 19th century with the intention being to ensure a presentation worthy of these exceptional wines. The neck-sleeve served to hide the traces of the lees, which could remain in the disgorged bottleneck. The ornamental neck-wrap explicitly evokes scarves, cords and other decorations that our ancestors liked to wear. It aims to remind us of the prestige and glory of our ancestors. Even the most classic modern labels keep the ancient calligraphic style, which was formerly used to write the sacred name of the king, respectfully surrounded by a wreath.

With the pressure of competition and the increasingly efficient skills of both the printers and the marketing departments, presentation over the years has become more sophisticated and elegant, in keeping with the image of the great wines of Champagne.

     Presentation, similar to the other processes, has been mechanised to a great extent. The prestige bottles are generally labelled by hand, due to their special shape and their limited series. On the other hand, standard bottles are labelled at a rate of 900 to 8,000 bottles per hour on a line comprising:

* a pallet unloader to place the disgorged bottles on the line;       * a bottle washer and drier;       * a capsuling machine to put on the sealing foil capsule;       * a labelling machine to stick on the various paper labels;       * a control post;       * a carton-packing machine;       * a carton palletiser. .
	Chaîne d'habillage de la Maison Gardet

      All the way along this perfectly regulated line, the least defect is tracked and immediately eliminated