How to pronounce Dom Pérignon

What is Dom Pérignon?

A vintage Champagne made by Moët & Chandon in Épernay, France, named after Dom Pierre Pérignon, a Benedictine monk and cellarer of the Abbey of Hautvillers.

Dom Pérignon is a brand of vintage Champagne produced by the house of Moët & Chandon, which is part of the LVMH group. The first vintage was 1921. It was first sold in 1936, when a shipment sailed to New York on the liner Normandie.

The name honors Dom Pierre Pérignon, a Benedictine monk born in Sainte-Menehould in 1638. In 1668 he moved to the Abbey of Saint-Pierre d'Hautvillers, near Épernay, where he served as cellarer until his death in 1715. Dom is not a first name. It is a title given to monks of certain orders, from the Latin dominus, meaning lord or master.

Popular stories credit him with inventing sparkling Champagne, but historians do not. He is remembered for careful pruning and gentle harvesting, and for blending grapes from several vineyards before pressing. The line about "tasting the stars" first appeared in an advertisement in the late 19th century.

On a label, the useful fact is that Dom Pérignon is always a vintage wine. Every bottle carries a year, all the grapes come from that harvest, and the wine is not made in years judged too weak. It is always a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. A rosé has been made since the 1959 vintage.

Dom Pérignon, syllable by syllable

Why Dom Pérignon is hard to say

In French, the letters gn stand for one sound, the ny you hear in "canyon" or "lasagna". The g is never sounded on its own, so there is no "pehr-ig" in Pérignon. The same rule gives you the ny in Sauvignon, Champagne and Bourgogne. Once you know it, most French wine names with gn fall into place.

A vowel followed by n or m at the end of a French syllable becomes a nasal vowel: the air goes through the nose and the consonant itself is not sounded. That applies twice here, in Dom and in the final -on. French also places a light stress on the last syllable of a phrase, which is why YAWN carries the beat. English habits pull the other way, sounding the m and moving the weight forward.

Other accepted pronunciations

These are also correct, and Vinolingo scores them as correct:

• dom perr-in-YON — Established English form.

Tips for saying it

How to order Dom Pérignon

In an English-speaking restaurant or shop, the established English form dom perr-in-YON is fine. Use dawn pay-reen-YAWN when you speak French or visit Champagne. Either way, keep the ny sound and put the weight on the last syllable. Because every bottle is a vintage, it helps to say the year you want.

• “Which vintage of Dom Pérignon do you have on the list?” Every bottle carries a year.
• “We would like a bottle of Dom Pérignon for the toast, please.”

Names often confused with Dom Pérignon

• Moët & Chandon (moh-ET ay shahn-DAWN): The Champagne house in Épernay that produces Dom Pérignon; Chandon ends in the same nasal vowel.
• Champagne (shahm-PAHN-yuh): The region and the wine, with the same gn read as ny.
• Sauvignon Blanc (so-vin-yawn BLAHNG): A white grape whose -gnon ending is said the same way as the end of Pérignon.

Questions about pronouncing Dom Pérignon

How do you pronounce Dom Pérignon?

In French, Dom Pérignon is pronounced dawn pay-reen-YAWN, with the gn said like the ny in "canyon", nasal vowels in Dom and in the last syllable, and a light stress at the end. In English, dom perr-in-YON is the established form and is also accepted.

Is the g silent in Dom Pérignon?

In effect, yes. The g is not sounded on its own. French gn is a single sound, the ny of "canyon", so the name ends in reen-YAWN. A version with a hard g, such as PEHR-ig-non, is often heard, but neither the French nor the English form has one.

What does Dom mean in Dom Pérignon?

Dom is a title, not a first name. It comes from the Latin dominus, meaning lord or master, and is placed before the names of monks in certain orders, including the Benedictines. The monk behind the name was Pierre Pérignon.

What is the difference between Dom Pérignon and Moët & Chandon?

Moët & Chandon is a Champagne house in Épernay that makes a range of wines, including non-vintage ones. Dom Pérignon is a vintage-only Champagne produced by that house and sold under its own name. Its first vintage was 1921 and it first went on sale in 1936.

Sources: Wikipedia: Dom Pérignon, Wikipedia: Dom Pérignon (monk), Wiktionary: Dom Pérignon, Wiktionnaire: dom. Last reviewed 2026-10-10.