The latest data from the drinks arm of luxury brands firm LVMH indicate that demand for champagne continues to rise.

Moet Hennessy, which includes the renowned champagne estates Moet and Chandon, Veuve Clicquot and Dom Perignon, announced that it had experienced 20 per cent sales growth in the first quarter of 2011.

This puts Moet Hennessy's total revenue for the first three months of the year to €762 million (£674 million).

The bump in profits was achieved despite experiencing a 25 per cent drop in sales in Japan, due to the earthquake and tsunami that has decimated parts of the country.

LVMH finance chief Jean-Jacques Guiony told Reuters: "We still face a very uncertain situation in Japan.

"Our hope is that Japan will be able to overcome the current situation as quickly as possible."

LVMH estate Veuve Clicquot recently announced that it is working on new techniques to try and remove unwanted earthy flavours from its champagne.