… the French government began to demarcate wine production areas to combat fraud and guarantee the origin of the wines.
The Champagne production area was defined in 1908 but Aube was excluded from the appellation. In 1911 the government went even further by declaring that wines made from grapes outside the appellation area could not be called Champagne. This meant that the Marne merchants could no longer get their grapes from winegrowers in the Aube.
Gaston Cheq had good connections, among them legal experts who were to help him plead the cause of the Aube winegrowers and right this injustice.
In 1927 Aube was finally officially included in the Champagne Appellation.
Gaston Cheq’s belief in the cause of the vineyards was resolutely human rather than political. He loved his fellow man and the vineyards so he did not think twice about defending them. Even after the revolt Gaston Cheq’s endeavours on behalf of the Aube vineyards continued.
In the late 1980s the Coteaux du Landion cooperative decided to create its own brand and the then managers were looking for a name. They wanted a name that reflected their structure, identity and values:
