Later that afternoon we continued our drive South to Epernay...
Apparently it's the self-proclaimed capital of Champagne and home to many- many of the worlds most celebrated Champagnes - and obviously we planned to try as many as we could!
Upon arrival it wasn't as picturesque as previously imagined, the rolling green vineyards were replaced with bare branches, grey skies and lashings of rain. Okay so I hadn't quite done my research on the appropriate times to visit Champagne for it's full glory, but it didn't dampen our spirits. Past the vast mass of vineyards (oh and industrial site if your into that) sits Epernay. A wonderfully cute little town, with a village carousel, daily food market and pastries to seriously die for (like seriously) We obviously came to drink Champagne under the table, so got right to it in one of the pubs, drinking lots of wine and eating amazing steak with the locals (I could easily put it in my top 5 of all time steaks you know - but that might just be the wine talking) before retreating back to the hotel in preparation for our champagne crawl the next day.
With sore heads we pulled ourselves out of bed to begin our only full day in Epernay. As I mentioned before Epernay wasn't the luscious countryside picture I had imagined it to be - in fact I really thought I would be running free through the vines with the wind in my hair and champagne in hand, basking in the summer sun and breathing in all that French air, but that was not to be!
Avenue Du Champagne is literally one long straight road brimming with Champagne houses eagerly awaiting your knock on the door. Yes really- on once occasion we literally knocked on the door of a beautiful french building, and we were invited in to taste a selection of local Champagnes
As you walk and walk you discover no two building the same. With larger brands like Moet occupying many buildings to smaller local houses nestled in between. For our tour we ventured to Mercier for the whole shabang. It's worth going to learn the full story of the in-depth, painstakingly process of how Champagne is actually made. It's no wonder the workers aren't pissed all the time as a reward for how long it takes to get from grape to bottle (i'm talking multiple years here) but I sure made my appreciation clear by sampling a few of their lovely bubbles after. You will roughly pay around £3 for a flute - and although the houses do no promote excessive drinking, you really can't help but walk to a few different places and drink it all in.
I will most definitely will be back for another adventure, and i'm thinking late Summer this time, so my dream of running through the vineyards can finally come true.
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We stayed - Ibis Hotel
We ate - Le Parisian (best steaks) / Le Central (yummy and cheap Croque Monsieur) / Paul (for pastries)
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