Day 20 – Sunday August 29th

We woke up at 7:00 today because our train was arriving in Paris at 8:19. After we got off the train, we headed out and hailed a cab. The cabbie drove us to Gare de L’Est where we printed out our First class tickets from a kiosk and then sat down to have breakfast. Our train was at 10:35 to Eperny – Champagne countryside. We sat in the train station for a while just talking and eating, I was teaching Allyson, Andrea and Denise the little French I know. We hopped on our train and sat down. The car was basically empty so we all sat separately. I read an article about Champagne production and tasting and looked out the window on our 1-hour trip east through the countryside.

I learned that in Northern France, due to the climate and the claylike earth, that its hard to grow grapes to their full potential and thus champagne was born. Because of these conditions, vineyards had to harvest their grapes before being fully ripe. This means that there is less sugars in the grape and therefore the subsequent wine would be awful. Instead, they would harvest these premature grapes, bottle them and ferment them – making a tart wine – and then add yeast and sugars – to create carbon dioxide – thus making it a sparkling wine or a champagne. They turn the bottles everyday for years until the residue of yeast etc has settled, then its flash frozen and pops out – leaving only the delicious bubbly we enjoy so much.

Once we got to Eperny we got off the train and walked to our Bed and Breakfast. It’s a cute little joint with a automatic gate and rocklike driveway.

We settled down and then we out for lunch. We walked north towards the republic circle down a street that our landlady recommended to a little restaurant called Cave. It was very good. I ate escargot and artichoke for an appetizer, then I had salmon lasagna, and for dessert I had a mixture of sorbets. We got a fruityish champagne for lunch, and it was very refreshing and bubbly. Andrea didn’t feel well so she and Denise went back to the B&B after lunch while Allyson and I headed on some champagne tours.

The different places are called champagne houses. We stopped by Moet and made reservations for the next day so Denise and Andrea could come, then we walked up Avenue de Champagne towards the other houses. We stopped at Mercier and took the tour. We got to take a laser-guided train around their cellars.

They have corridors so long that you can’t see the other end of them. Their cellar system runs along underneath Avenue de Champagne. Although a huge winery, Mercier doesn’t export any product and only 2 of the 6 wines produced can be bought at other locations than their house.

Allyson and I also tried to differed Brut champagnes – a rose and a brut champagne. It started to rain so we headed home and I hopped in the shower.