Epernay

There is a town east of Paris where an ambitious monk invented an important creation - a new alcoholic beverage.

Not originally intended for each New Year, millions of people now enjoy the beverage at least annually.  Epernay is at the heart of this region.

The train from Paris takes a bit over an hour to roll through the countryside.  Once in the town, you can start to wander and enjoy a small French city.

Oh, and they have Champagne, too.










“Thirsty?”

“Why, I haven’t drunk anything in… minutes.”

Wandering from the train station it is difficult not to happen upon the tourism bureau.  With a free tasting, the stumble around town began.

Moet* and Chandon, famous for Dom Perignon, conveniently resides outside the tourism bureau.  Not satisfied with mere tasting, education can be received on the tour.  Team Moet focuses on older methods of champagne creation.  You walk through vast caves and puzzle at what this bottle did to deserve its position behind bars.  The marketing is a tad thick, but the education is solid.  A good base for a day of drinking and learning.

Tour Grade: B



De Castallane, on the other hand, felt more natural.  The champagne house’s tour focuses on modern methods and any marketing is subtle.  You pay the fee, learn a lot about how champagne is made, and enjoy a tasting.  Afterwards, like the other houses, you can pay for more tastings.  There is also a tower to climb that gives you a complete view of the city.

Tour Grade: A

Final stop was Mercier.  One could tell you about the tour if one would have taken it.  However, lessons were learned here.  Apparently, there are laws against having a tasting without a tour.  So, if you are toured out, you may only have a tasting if you say you are interested in buying.  And instead of paying for the touring and tasting, this is apparently free.  Somehow, somewhere, this makes sense to someone. Regardless, the "short tour" was much appreciated.

Tour Grade: A+



Another surprise is that the vineyards are public property.  If you have the time, you may traverse through them at your leisure and try some grapes.  At least, this is what one guy in town said.

Hope he was right…

The rest of the village is mostly what you would expect from small-town France.  There are restaurants, shops, and churches.  Beautiful gardens adorn the houses.  Cats sleep peacefully perched upon pylons.

Overall a great day trip whether you know everything or nothing about Champagne.








*The French pronounce the “t”.