The Coteaux, Maisons et Caves de Champagne are listed as a World Heritage Site in the category of "living evolving cultural landscapes" by UNESCO since 4 July 2015.
We suggest you to 2pm a discovery of our landscape up to the newly landscaped viewpoint above the church coast. We will talk about life in Bergères and the mobilization of its inhabitants to better live together and develop new activities.
The period of these European Heritage Days is part of the culmination for winemakers of the annual work in the vineyards: **the harvest.**That’s why we then suggest you to 15h the oldest press in the town still in operation. It is a Goliath cylinder press whose origin dates back to 1870. Bergères was acquired in 1982 by Yves Berthelot. It allows to press, with the manual help of 4 employees, 4000kg of grapes and obtain 2550 liters of juice.
A family history and solidarity
In 1961 Yves Berthelot joined forces with his brother Gilbert, Serge Schwindenhammer, Louis Rigollot and René Ancelot. They created the very first "Société civile d'Exploitation de Bergères" with the help of their Mayor Jean Van den Broecke. At that time, only 12ha were planted with vines. " Other holdings were disappearing due to the age of the owners. The descendants then considered the renovation of a vineyard which had hardly brought prosperity to their parents too risky and too expensive". This new cooperative carried the following motto as the 3 Musketeers of Dumas: "one for all, all for one". They solicited a seventh partner, Pierre Enard, a child of the assistant, then employed by one of them. Come with us, you have no land, we will share ours equally and you will have yours". They then hired a full-time employee, Jacques Demesmacker of Spoy, the neighbouring village. Each member was paid by the hour. They cleared a total of 22ha then they ensured the grafting and plantations. To finance this company they decided to graft vine seedlings to market. Nearly 175,000 vines were planted on American wood. The vineyard was therefore at that time the most homologated in the region and recognized by the INAO.
Go to the church parking lot