Champagne Taste on a Beer Budget
Trip Start
Sep 07, 2008
1
25
33
Trip End
Oct 10, 2008
Épernay,
Champagne-Ardenne,
France
Friday, October 3, 2008
We started at de Castellane which is a lesser known brand outside France as 80% of the wine they produce is drunk here in France. It may be smaller and lesser known, but it has one of the most impressive maison complete with an enormous tower. Our guided tour consisted of Matt, myself and the guide, Antoine. We were taken through an extensive explanation of the grape varieties of the region and how champagne is made. We were then taken on a tour of the caves
Moet & Chandon Maison
. The reason this region is so unique for champagne production is that the soil is very chalky and well drained, and as a result, under the town of Epernay are over 100km of caves used for storing champagne. The caves are very moist with plenty of mould growing all over the walls and ceilings, and remain a constant temperature of 10 degrees all year round. It is quite incredible walking through the caves seeing racks upon racks of champagne just sitting and aging. As it goes through this aging process sediment is formed inside the bottle. The process by which the sediment is removed is perhaps the most fascinating. Once the wines are aged enough, the bottles are put in racks on an angle. Each day the bottle is rotated between an eighth and a quarter turn, sometimes by hand but also by machine. This process is called Riddling and causes the sediment to eventually end up in the neck of the bottle. The neck of the bottle is then frozen and the cap removed. The pressure inside the bottle forces the sediment out, making space for sugar to be added for the final sweetness. The final cork is then inserted and the bottle is sold ready to be drunk. The tour took us through all the room where these things occur and finished with a glass of their champagne to try.
After lunch we had booked a tour at Moet & Chandon. As soon as we arrived we realised it was going to be a little bit different to our previous tour as the foyer was full of people. The tour at Moet & Chandon was in a different league than this morning's. More discussion about how champagne is made, but this time with respect to the more prestigious vintage champagnes. At the end of the tour they give you the option of tasting the regular Imperial range, or the Vintage Range
The Dom
. Matt had the bright idea that if we each get a different one then we would be able to directly compare the two. It was a great idea as when we tasted the difference it became obvious why you pay so much more for the vintages. It may sound a little wine wankerish but the vintage had so much more body it was like a punch in the mouth compared to the other one. Matt was awfully disappointed that due to the baggage restrictions we weren't able to buy any to take home as it was all so cheap. Sadly the case of Dom Perignon for 1000 Euros had to stay on the shelf for another day. Buzzing after our tastings at Moet, we opted to try and squeeze one more visit in before they all shut for the day. We headed down the street to Mercier, famous within France for their giant champagne barrel that was carted through the streets from Epernay to Paris in 1889 for the world fair. I think they were actually disappointed that it only received second prize, although it did take something as impressive as the Eiffel Tower to beat it. The tour of Mercier was a lot tackier than any of the others we had done, however we did think it was pretty funny that we were taken through the caves in a "train with fricking laser beams attached to its forehead". (Apologies for the lame Austin Powers quote there but it had to be said!) It continued in its lameness when we were poured perhaps the smallest glass of champagne of any of the tours at the end, before being spat out in the gift shop
de Castellane Maison
. Seriously, save your money and just poke your head in the foyer for a glimpse at the massive barrel. All champagned out, we had a quiet night with dinner at our restaurant from last night. Like I said, Epernay is a small town and when you find something as good as we had last night it is easier to just come back again. Our meals did not disappoint and for a second night in a row we had a great feed for under 50 Euro.
I have really enjoyed our visit to the Champagne region and not just because I got to drink more expensive champagne in the last two days than I ever have in my life. It was great to learn about how it is made and to understand a little more about what I am drinking. Next time I think we will have to venture into Reims, the home of Mumm, Krug and many others.
