Epernay

Town in Marne département, Champagne-Ardenne region, France, on the River Marne; population (1990) 27,700. Together with Reims, it is the centre of the champagne industry. Corks, casks, and bottles are manufactured alongside the production and storage of champagne; the town has over 50 km/31 mi of long wine cellars hollowed out of the hillsides. There are railway repair yards here, and wood products and textiles are manufactured.

Epernay suffered in the Hundred Years' War, was burnt by Francis I in 1544, and was badly damaged in World War I. Nearby is Hatvillers, the ruined monastery of Dom Perignon, the reputed inventor of sparkling champagne.