France - a short tour through the Champagne area

France - a short tour through the Champagne area

Visit the cathedral of Reims, you can perfectly explore the city on foot. In the cathedral they provide guided tours into the clocktower etc.

Palace of Tau. Well worth a visit, Reims was the ' coronation city' of all the French kings. This is linked with the coronation of 32 kings of France from 11th century to Charles X in 1825. To the Right of the cathedral, a low building called ' palais du tau' was the residence for the -would be- king during his stay in Reims. The main attraction here is an exhibition of the different crown jewels of which some date back to the 12th century. A full price visit is Euro7. 50, under 18yrs are free, you can buy a joint ticket for the Cathedral and Palace for Euro11.

Visit the main champagne producer ' Pommery' in Reims. For 12 euro, you get a guided tour through their caves (30m below surface and a total length of 18km) in which their champagne is layed down. It’s rather Commercial and touristic but you can gain an understanding of the production process of Champagne. At the end of your tour a well deserved glass of Champagne awaits you.

To the South and north east of Reims there are numerous small champagne producers. You can' t miss them, they are literally everywhere. To the south of Reims into an area which is called the ' Montagne de Reims' . This is a region between Epernay in the south and Reims in the North. The First champagne village you encounter is only as far as 3km from the center. From there on, a touristic champagne route labeled by black traffic signs guides you from village to village. In every village, the producers are clearly marked by different signs. You just go to their house, ring the bell and ask for a ' dégustation' . They will be happy to let you taste their wine and you can buy as many bottles as you want. Prices average around 15 euro/bottle. They are very proud of their product, so you may expect a detailed explanation. If you continue on the Champagne Route Southbound you arrive in Epernay.

The drive through these beautiful scenic roads is just amazing.

Start in Ecueil, champagne house Lacoure-Guillemart, This is highly recommended.

From here on, just follow the route south, and you' ll hop from village to village until you can buy no more.

In Epernay, you can spend a full day visiting local houses in different villages, This is also an epicenter of big named champagne houses like Moet & Chandon etc. Walk at the ' Boulevard de champagne' to see all the great houses. Very nice here.

3 km away from Epernay you also have a nice champagne village called Hautvillers which is worth visiting. An abbey is located here in which the tombstone of Dom Pérignon can be visited. You can visit champagne house Joseph Desruets to see the oldest wine press in the region.

In Verzenay you can visit a champagne production museum in a lighthouse. The Lighthouse was built as a commercial stunt in the 1920' s. Nice panoramic views from the lighthouse, an old mill is also located in the village.

A couple of recommended restaurants:

Le boulingrin in Reims

La cave a champagne in Epernay.

I recommend the month of September as the wineries begin to collect and prepare their grapes! ! !