Larmandier-Bernier Champagne Lunch in Chicago

Arthur Larmandier will present ten wines from his family’s estate over lunch at Obélix in Chicago on October 23, 2026. The La Fête du Champagne event includes magnums, a three-vintage Terre de Vertus comparison and wines from Avize and Cramant, giving you a focused way into Larmandier-Bernier’s Chardonnay-led range.

Exclusive members discount

• 11% discount on the Chicago Magnum Package, Grand Tasting + Gala Dinner
• Members price: $795 + tax (regular package price: $895 + tax). Save $100 per package.
• What you get: One ticket to the Chicago Grand Tasting and one ticket to the Gala Dinner.
• Discount code: PEARL. The booking link includes the code.
• How to book: Book the Chicago Magnum Package.

This offer applies to the Grand Tasting + Gala Dinner package. Other events are ticketed separately. Availability and applicable fees are shown at checkout.

If you are attending the wider La Fête du Champagne program, use the package for the Grand Tasting and Gala Dinner, then book this Larmandier-Bernier lunch separately.

The lineup will particularly suit Chardonnay drinkers. It follows the estate through several villages in the Côte des Blancs, then adds Vertus Rouge 2020, a still red wine from Champagne. With Arthur there to discuss the wines, guests can connect the bottles to their origins and the choices behind them.

Lunch begins at noon CT at Obélix, 700 N Sedgwick St, Chicago. Tickets cost $495 plus tax. The ten-wine selection appears below.

What this La Fête du Champagne lunch is

This is a seated, single-estate tasting lunch with Arthur Larmandier presenting the wines. That format gives you time to follow one family’s work across several sites and harvests, with food alongside the tasting.

The three Terre de Vertus vintages, 2018, 2017 and 2016, provide one clear comparison. The two releases each of Les Chemins d’Avize and Vieille Vigne du Levant offer others. Rather than skimming a broad Champagne list, you can return to the same cuvées across different years.

Arthur works alongside his parents, Pierre and Sophie, and his brother Georges. He can discuss the practical decisions behind the bottles, from farming and harvest dates to fermentation, aging and dosage.

The estate and its Côte des Blancs setting

Larmandier-Bernier is based in Vertus, in the Côte des Blancs, a Champagne subregion south of Épernay known for Chardonnay and chalk soils. The estate has vineyards in villages including Cramant, Avize and Oger, and its Blanc de Blancs Champagnes are made from Chardonnay.

Pierre Larmandier gave up herbicides in 1992, and the estate has been farmed biodynamically since 1999. Arthur joined the estate in 2017 and Georges in 2021. The family emphasizes its vineyard work and the character of individual sites, which makes the village comparisons in this lunch useful in the glass.

Listen for how Arthur describes Vertus beside Avize or Cramant, then taste those differences in the 2016 wines and the Terre de Vertus vertical. Particularly useful questions are direct: what changes between releases of the same cuvée, and what belongs to the village rather than the vintage?

The announced Larmandier-Bernier wines

• Longitude 1er Cru Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs NV in magnum
• Terre de Vertus 1er Cru Brut Nature 2018, 2017 and 2016
• Les Chemins d’Avize Grand Cru Extra Brut 2017 and 2016
• Vieille Vigne du Levant Grand Cru Extra Brut 2016 and 2015
• Vertus Rouge 2020, a still Coteaux Champenois
• Latitude Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs NV in magnum

Longitude and Latitude will both be poured from magnum. Each bottle holds 1.5 liters, twice the volume of a standard bottle. They introduce two of the estate’s non-vintage Blanc de Blancs cuvées before the tasting moves into more site-specific wines.

Terre de Vertus appears in three consecutive vintages: 2018, 2017 and 2016. The wine receives no added dosage. Taste these releases together to compare acidity, texture and development while holding the cuvée constant.

Les Chemins d’Avize 2017 and 2016 comes from two parcels in Avize. Vieille Vigne du Levant 2016 and 2015 comes from Cramant, with vines that include plantings more than 80 years old. The two 2016s offer a clean comparison between villages, alongside Terre de Vertus from the same year.

Vertus Rouge 2020 is a still red Coteaux Champenois. It adds another side of the family’s work and a different view of Vertus, the village represented by several of the sparkling wines.

Exact wines and vintages are subject to change. Check the official event page for the latest lineup before booking.

How to taste Vertus, Avize and Cramant

The three villages give the tasting its geographical focus. Vertus is the family’s home and the origin of Terre de Vertus. Avize and Cramant are both Grand Cru villages, represented by wines tied to specific vineyards.

Start by comparing the 2016 Terre de Vertus, Les Chemins d’Avize and Vieille Vigne du Levant, then return to their other vintages. The first pass keeps the harvest year the same while changing sites and cuvées. The second follows an individual wine through different seasons and lengths of aging.

The labels also use Extra Brut and Brut Nature. Extra Brut has no more than 6 grams of sugar per liter; Brut Nature has less than 3 grams and no sugar added after the second fermentation. Use those terms as guides to sweetness, while noting how acidity and texture shape the impression of dryness.

The Obélix setting

Obélix is the Chicago restaurant from brothers Oliver and Nicolas Poilevey. A seated lunch lets you revisit wines as the meal develops, especially the Terre de Vertus vertical and the paired Avize and Cramant releases.

The final dishes will determine the specific pairings. For now, the draw is a meal built around one grower estate, with a member of the family there to discuss the wines. Contact the organizers before booking if you need to confirm dietary accommodations.

Booking and practical details

The Larmandier-Bernier Champagne lunch takes place at 12pm CT on Friday, October 23, 2026, at Obélix, 700 N Sedgwick St, Chicago, IL 60654. Tickets for this individual lunch cost $495 plus tax through La Fête du Champagne.

Check the official event page for ticket availability and updates to the wines and menu. The lunch is part of La Fête’s October 22 to 24 Chicago program, so plan this separately from the Grand Tasting and Gala Dinner package if you want the single-estate Larmandier-Bernier tasting.