Epernay - France

The last leg of the tour and by no means the least, takes us to the heart of the Champagne region.  There, we will indulge in the finest bubblies and marvel at the beautiful rolling hills covered with the most famous vines in the world.  History and mouth-watering food will complete an unforgettable stay at Epernay.

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Rolling Hills of the Champagne Region

Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Somewhere in Champagne

The city of Epernay in the Marne department in Northern France is a Champagne enthusiast’s dream.  Located south of Reims, on the left bank of the Marne, it offers endless opportunities to taste the country’s most famous export.


Daniel Food and Wine Tours: One of the Many Fine Houses in the Avenue de Champagne

Daniel Food and Wine Tours: The Hautvillers Cafe Near Epernay

The self-proclaimed “Capitale du Champagne” and home of many of the world’s most celebrated Champagne houses, Epernay is the best place for touring cellars.  The town is also an excellent Home base for exploring the Champagne Routes.  Epernay is the principal "warehouse" for Champagne which is kept in large cellars.

Daniel Food and Wine Tours: Champagne Charles Mignon

 

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Champagne Bottles Ageing

The most famous street in Epernay is the Avenue de Champagne which features the leading Champagne manufacturers.  Lined with stately champagne houses, the Avenue is Épernay’s main attraction.  Here you will find famous names such as Moet et Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Pol Roger, Mercier and Perrier Jouet, as well as a number of lesser known houses including Vranken and de Castellane.  Many of these houses are open for tours and tastings.

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Famous Avenue de Champagne

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Pol Roger House



Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Mercier House

 

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The De Castellane House



Beneath the Avenue and adjoining streets, in 110km of subterranean cellars that have been carved out of the chalk, which the town sits on, more than 200 million bottles of Champagne, just waiting to be popped open are being aged.  The most impressive of all cellars, running over 17 miles, is the cellar of Moet et Chandon -20 Avenue de Champagne- which is shared with Dom Perignon.  A tour of the cellars, some of which are 100 feet under the ground, is a good introduction to the art of champagne- making.  You are led past endless rows of champagne beneath the avenue before sampling a glass of bubbly. 

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Champagne Ageing

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Underground Champagne Tunnels

How Champagne is made

To be named champagne, the grapes must be grown in the 33 and a half thousand hectares of the North East region of France called Champagne.  245 million years ago, the Champagne region was covered by a prehistoric sea.  Today, the fossilised remains of the creatures that lived in that sea have turned to chalk; providing the perfect conditions for growing grapes.  This soil retains just the right amount of moisture so the vines don’t dry out.  Each soil is qualified according to the quality of grapes which it produces.

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Vine Fields of Champagne

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Hautvillers Nestled amongst its Vines

The very best soil is qualified as Grand Cru.  Only 3 varieties of grapes are used to make champagne

           2 red grapes             Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier

           1 white grape           Chardonnay



Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Champagne Vines

 

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  More Vines

Additional rules apply to how the grapes can be pruned, picked, pressed, fermented and aged.  Grapes are harvested around mid-September.  The grapes are immediately pressed and the juice is filtered.  The grape juices from each part of the region of Champagne have different tastes which are mainly caused by the different soil compositions and the amount of sun exposure.  The grapes’ skin and pulp can alter the juices’ flavour so they have to be removed quickly.


Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  A Charles Mignon Trio

A Winter scene...

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The vines in Winter

For white champagne, the grapes are squashed and the juices quickly separated from the skins to avoid any coloration.
Pink champagne is produced by leaving the skins with the juice for just the right amount of time.

Vintage champagne is traditionally fermented in old oak barrels.  Non-vintage champagnes are produced in large stainless steel tanks.

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Champagne Christmas Tree



Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Vines in Summer

The fermentation process begins by adding yeast to the juice.  In about 8 to 10 days, the yeast turns the sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide gas.  Blending begins after the first fermentation stage.

The mixture is then bottled with yeast and sugar and the bottles are stored in dark cool cellars at about 12 degrees centigrade for a period of approximately 5 weeks.  The bottles are sealed usually with steel caps so the carbon dioxide cannot escape.  This additional fermentation raises the alcohol content to 12.5 %

Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Underground Ageing Tunnels



Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Harvest Time

After fermentation, the bottles are laid down horizontally and gradually on an angle to allow the yeast residues to fall into the neck of the bottle.  This is when the turning of the bottles occurs.  This process can take up to 3 weeks.  Nowadays most of this process is done by machines.

The bottles are then aged from 2 to 10 years.  After the ageing has occurred, the bottles are put into a machine that freezes the necks of the bottles.  The yeast residue is quickly frozen into a small ice cube.  The bottles are then opened and the gas ejects the ice cube containing the yeast residue.  This process is called disgorging.  An amount of wine and cane sugar is added to the champagne.


Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  The Different Champagne Bottle Sizes



Daniel Food and Wine Tours:  Some of the Sizes of Champagne Bottes

This process bring the champagne to 3 sweetness levels: Brut, Sec or Demi-Sec.  The corks are then inserted and wired in the bottes.  The bottles return to the cellar for at least 3 months.  Once they come out of the cellar, each bottle is inspected for any defects, cork particles or any other impurities.  The next stage is to apply the foil caps and the labels before the champagne can be ready for drinking. 

Enjoy !!!