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From Limoux, with love!
Of the family’s seven generations of winegrowers, five have been women. “Cuvée Françoise” is a tribute to that history, begun by the monks of Saint-Hilaire in 1544 and carried forward for seven generations by the Antech Gazeau family. Across two Crémants and two Blanquettes, Françoise has crafted wines that are fresh, elegant and sparkling … just like her!
One mother, two sons, one shared passion
Learn
Each new generation joins the family project to learn first and foremost: to listen, observe and honor the work of those who came before. Alongside her uncle Roger and her father Georges, Françoise discovered her passion for sparkling wine and sharpened her palate.
Moving forward
Since the 2000s, Françoise has gradually brought her own touch, with a focus on quality and bold choices, to give Limoux’s sparkling wines the recognition they deserve. Longer aging and a commitment to sustainable viticulture are good examples of that.
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Baptiste joined the estate in 2020, followed in 2026 by his brother Louis, to absorb what Françoise and the generations before her had built, while bringing the fresh perspective a changing world calls for.
The Cuvée Françoise range
Our Wines
Elegant, fresh and complex: four sparkling wines that carry Françoise’s signature, from vine to glass.
Each bottle is made using the traditional method: the grapes are hand-harvested, gently pressed, then undergo a first fermentation in tank at low temperature. After blending, the wine undergoes a second fermentation in the bottle, then rests on its lees for an extended aging period that refines the bubble and reveals the terroir.
Blanquette de Limoux · Brut Nature
“The Freshness”
AOP Blanquette de Limoux · 100% Mauzac · Brut Nature (0g/L) · 30 months on lees
Notes of citrus and fresh apple on the nose, carried by toasted hints from the extended aging. The palate is lively, with fine bubbles and a mineral finish.
Pairs well with: fresh goat cheese, or on its own as an aperitif for those who love it.
Blanquette de Limoux · Brut
“The Authentic”
AOP Blanquette de Limoux · 100% Mauzac · Brut (6g/L) · 30 months on lees
The same Mauzac character — pear, quince and white flowers — rounded out by a touch of dosage, for a fresh, easy-drinking style.
Pairs well with: a versatile aperitif, perfect with tapas or a charcuterie board.
Crémant de Limoux · Blanc
“The Classic”
AOP Crémant de Limoux · 70% Chardonnay · 20% Chenin · 10% Mauzac · Brut (6g/L) · 30 months on lees
White flowers and grapefruit on the nose; a precise palate where ripe citrus meets a touch of roundness.
Pairs well with: seafood, scallops, or on its own to open a meal.
Crémant de Limoux · Rosé
“The Delicate”
AOP Crémant de Limoux · 60% Chardonnay · 20% Chenin · 20% Pinot Noir
Pale pink in color, with freshness and red fruit on the nose, and the same precision that defines the whole range on the palate, leaving you wanting more!
Pairs well with: sushi or ceviche.
Since 1860
Our Story
From a Parisian head office to a vineyard in Limoux: the story of a family, a terroir, and a woman who does things her own way.
From Paris to Limoux
Françoise Antech Gazeau grew up in a family of winegrowers established in Limoux since 1860. She studied and built her career in Paris, spending nearly ten years at L’Oréal promoting French savoir-faire around the world.
But the pull of the family estate never really faded. In 1995, she returned to Limoux to join her father, Georges, and her uncle, Roger, on the family estate — a return, quite literally, to her vines.
Limoux, birthplace of the bubbles
Long before Champagne, there was Limoux. In 1544, Benedictine monks at the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire — less than a kilometer from Françoise’s vines — created the world’s very first sparkling wine.
Nearly five centuries later, on the foothills of the Pyrenees, that same terroir still produces magical bubbles.
The Mauzac grape
At the heart of Cuvée Françoise lies Mauzac — an old, local grape variety grown almost exclusively around Limoux since the Middle Ages. Mauzac brings aromas of orchard fruit (fresh pear, apple, quince…) and white flowers, a fresh palate and — with age — delicate toasted notes.
A responsible approach to farming
A pioneer for 30 years in building as sustainable a viticulture as possible, the estate has been farmed organically since 2020. Lighter glass, bio-sourced paper, full waste recycling, better insulation for the winery, and profit-sharing extended to all employees since 2022: small decisions, taken consistently, that build a project where value is shared.
Beyond the vineyard
Françoise’s commitment reaches beyond the winery doors. For the past fifteen years, she has sponsored the Limoux Brass Festival. She is also a co-founder of Vinifilles, an association of women winegrowers from the Languedoc working to make more room for women in the world of wine.
A label with character
Cuvée Françoise’s bold, colorful labels are the work of Montpellier-based designer Nicolas Martin — a deliberate choice, breaking with the conventional codes of sparkling wine to reflect Françoise’s personality: joyful, passionate and radiant.
Both feet firmly planted in our land, head in the stars.
Françoise Antech Gazeau
