Luxury cruise line Silversea has partnered with a prestigious champagne house to upgrade its onboard wine experience—and it isn’t your typical corporate-owned champagne brand, either.
Champagne Duval-Leroy, an independent, family-owned producer with a long history dating back to the mid-19th century, has been chosen as Silversea’s exclusive champagne provider.
Charles Duval-Leroy, marketing director at Champagne Duval-Leroy, says the initial groundwork for the partnership started six years ago, thanks to a partnership between the winery and Relais & Châteaux, which, at the time, was also a partner of Silversea. More conversations took place over the years, but the deal was formalized in 2023.
“They chose Champagne Duval-Leroy because we are a family business,” Duval-Leroy tells Observer. “It’s small, very precious. They could have chosen a more famous champagne maker, but they wanted to show something different. They chose us because we are also a small luxury brand.”
Champagne Duval-Leroy made its official debut with Silversea in Lisbon, Portugal during the recent inaugural voyage of the new Silver Ray, which will be sailing along the Iberian Peninsula this summer. A house champagne has always been offered on a complimentary basis aboard each of Silversea’s ships (except for the Silver Origin, on which fine sparkling wine is served) as part of the company’s all-inclusive offerings at sea. Higher-end bottles such as Krug, Louis Roederer, Bollinger, Laurent-Perrier and Dom Pérignon are available to purchase by the glass or bottle.
The house prides its commitment to sustainable practices and meticulous production methods, resulting in organic and vegan wines as no animal proteins are used in the fermentation process.
And given Champagne Duval-Leroy’s long history dating back to 1859 (essentially through the marriage of two local families—the son of the Duval family and the daughter of the Leroy family), it has earned the unofficial designation of “Champagnes de Créateurs,” a title awarded within the local industry for creativity in the variety of wines a house produces. Among Champagne Duval-Leroy’s creative achievements include a first-of-its-kind certified organic champagne; a single-vineyard Blanc de Blancs (made from an unusually large single plot at three hectares, grown exclusively with chardonnay); and a Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru, 100 percent chardonnay champagne with fruit coming exclusively from Grand Cru, the official designation in France for the highest quality vineyards.
The winery and vineyards are in the heart of France’s Champagne region, near the town of Vertus, comprising more than two hundred hectares of vines, planted mainly with chardonnay on plots classified as Grand Cru or Premier Cru (a designation that varies a bit by region, but in Champagne refers to specific villages considered to produce grapes of exceptional quality).
The Brut Réserve, for instance, is matured on its lees for 30 to 36 months, and it comprises approximately 60 percent pinot noir, 30 percent pinot meunier and 10 percent chardonnay grapes. Just a tad floral with aromas of almond and toast on the nose, the Brut Réserve has flavors of citrus and fruit, such as apple and pear.
Producing a variety of champagnes that champion the French tradition while looking to the future, Champagne Duval-Leroy takes a boutique approach to production, limiting the size of its production to ensure the highest quality of its labels. The house produces approximately 1.5 million to 2 million bottles per year, on average.
For Champagne Duval-Leroy, now a sixth-generation family business, the Silversea partnership aligns with the house’s ongoing strategy to share its wines with a more discerning audience through a portfolio of travel and hospitality partners around the world. Duval-Leroy already collaborates with five-star hoteliers such as Rosewood Hotels, and it can be found on the in-flight wine lists in first and business class on several airlines, including Delta Air Lines, Air France and British Airways. But Silversea is Champagne Duval-Leroy’s first partner in the cruise industry.
According to Charles Duval-Leroy, who runs the company alongside his mother and two brothers, it’s about shared values, adding his family was impressed by Silversea’s focus on creating a unique and luxurious experience, with a focus on exceptional wine programs.
“I don’t know the vision of cruise lines very well. But I know the vision of Silversea. I know it’s a very American company with a European vision for the wine program,” Duval-Leroy says. “We have the same vision of luxury and pleasure.”
Silversea, known for its ultra-luxury amenities and more intimate vessels compared to some of the mega-ships under the umbrella of parent company Royal Caribbean, sees Champagne Duval-Leroy as a perfect match.
“Silversea has ‘partnered’ with very few brands, and in every case, image is paramount,” Lawrence d'Almeida, wine program manager for Silversea, tells Observer. “The process itself is varied but, of course, always based on luxury brand image synergy.”
For Silversea, this means curating a wine program that reflects their brand of ultra-luxury travel. Champagne Duval-Leroy’s focus on handcrafted, small-batch production aligns with Silversea’s desire to offer guests trips that are highly curated and unique. And this isn’t just about offering another champagne option to the wine list, either. Silversea has plans to weave Champagne Duval-Leroy into its cruise experiences worldwide. To start, guests can expect complimentary glasses of Duval-Leroy’s Brut Réserve throughout their stays as the house champagne of choice on voyages across the Silversea fleet of 12 all-suite, ultra-luxe ships.
“Silversea needed to find a new partnership for a variety of reasons, mostly due to availability as the fleet has been growing fast—about 200,000 bottles of complimentary champagne are consumed every year, and few champagne producers can spare those numbers to begin with—and pricing, of course,” D’Almeida says. “Credit for the bidding process should go to Silversea’s purchasing department, who did the footwork to come up with candidate champagnes.”
At this point, D’Almeida stepped in to eliminate, based purely on quality, he explains, noting that he has known of Duval-Leroy for years, but just as one among the many champagne houses. More recently, D’Almeida encountered Duval-Leroy champagnes in what he describes as more “privileged settings,” such as airline business classes and luxury hotels.
“I always favored Duval-Leroy, but the final decision was collegial, as a champagne brand partnership partakes of image and marketing as much as intrinsic quality,” D’Almeida says. “Of the two finalists, Duval-Leroy won out.”
Silversea is planning special champagne dinners, meal pairings and tastings featuring Duval-Leroy champagnes, offering guests a deeper appreciation for the brand’s nuances. For those seeking an upgrade, the Duval-Leroy Rosé Prestige Premier Cru will be offered to guests in upper suites upon embarkation. And the Duval-Leroy Femme de Champagne 2002 (which has a suggested retail price on land just over $300 per bottle) will also be available on Silversea’s Connoisseur’s list of exceptional wines at onboard restaurants, for an additional fee.
“We love this kind of programming,” says Duval-Leroy. “Not only complimentary champagne, but also educational seminars and videos and more programming together that will really share the champagne.”
