Two-day Trip in Champagne

Day 1

Morning: Departure from your Parisian residence at 8.00am (arrival in the first domain at 10.00am).

Guided tour of the private museum and wine tasting of 3 Champagnes.

Two hours out of Paris, your chauffeur will take you to the heart of the prestigious Côte des Blancs, the kingdom of Chardonnay, to a vineyard classified 100% in the scale of great wines, Les Grands Crus. Philippe and Adeline have passionately made their exceptional quality, thanks to knowledge passed down father to daughter since 1892.
You enter into the secret world of Champagne’s artists and artisans. To tantalise your taste buds and marry the unexpected with pure pleasure, you will taste 3 exceptional Champagnes.

Lunch: On the slopes of the Marne Valley, we have selected the best addresses for your bistronomic lunch in a little corner of paradise. This is more than nature’s invitation, it is tasting food and aromatic fragrances coming straight out of the garden.

Afternoon: A wander through Epernay – visits and wine tastings.

Capital of the vineyards, Epernay regroups the most famous Champagne Houses in the world. The town’s main artery, the Avenue de Champagne, listed as a Unesco World Heritage site, is over a kilometre long and is a unique example of urban representation. To start the afternoon, a compulsory halt to Moët et Chandon for the Grand Vintage visit. We will then guide you to our personal favourite, a seventeenth century domain, to discover a blend of three varieties of Champagne, Chardonnais, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Generation after generation have taken up the challenge. Jean-Manuel and François are no exception, and will have you taste their Blancs de Blancs, Blancs de Noir and Symphonie Rosée Champagnes.

Day 2

Morning: The local environment is ideal for relaxing.

Passages Secrets offers you the time to live at your own pace and profit from your immersion in the Champagne region.
From your hotel, there are different possibilities for your morning: you can wander and take full advantage of the infinite view of the Marne Valley and benefit from the swimming pool and spa. You can take the path to the vineyards on the bicycle at your disposal or simply, put on your walking shoes and amble through the vines. Your private chauffeur can also take you to discover the charming villages of Aÿ-Champagne and Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, true depositaries of Champagne’s history.

Lunch at home!

It is our privilege to be able to take you to an enchanting little castle, a real jewel built in the middle of the vineyards. The chef proposes an inventive and generous cuisine: the French Art of Life makes this manor your home and this meal an enchanting moment.

Afternoon: The discovery of Madame Clicquot and the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims.

Barbe Ponsardi was born in Reims in 1777. At the age of 21, she married François Clicquot, the son of the labels’ founder. You will discover the extraordinary life of the lady, whose contemporaries rightly called La Grande Dame de Champagne. A promenade on foot will take you to the historical sites surrounding Madame Clicquot’s life, including the magnificent chalk cellars. And then, in a private salon, you will taste the Veuve Clicquot Carte Jaune and the prestigious cuvée, La Grande Dame.

Your Ambassador then reels back 800 years of history. Emblematic of France’s history, the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims witnessed, between 1027 and 1825, the crowning of 29 French Kings. The master-glassmakers of Reims put all their craftsmanship into this edifice; the sculptors, stone masons and a whole host of different artisans still work to this day on restoring and preserving this heritage.

Departure from Reims at 6pm, back in Paris around 7.30pm

Photo Credit : The Veuve Clicquot cellars. ©Leif Carlsson, February 2015.