Jeff: "I think we should head south from here." Leigh: "Maybe we should check out Epernay instead." What was I thinking! Sunday morning we left Chalons-en-Champagne fully recharged and headed towards Epernay, considered to be the capital of champagne.The Blue Dot on Google maps lead the way with the usual mixture of pavement, singletrack (mountain bike path) and good old fashioned bush-whacking. Apparently, according to Google, if you can fit your arm through it you must be able to bike through it.
At last we arrived at our campsite just outside of Epernay. This particular campsite had it's own little outdoor restaurant, the P'tit Resto, that overlooked the river. Dinner started with a glass of champagne, as every dinner should. Pizza was outstanding. There was even a French lounge singer which was very cool. After ordering our bread for the morning (2 croissants, 2 pain-au-chocolat, 1 baguette svp) we went back to our... campsite. Just writing that makes me laugh. Camping in Canada is a completely different experience. The next morning we awoke early for our day of touring the area. As the saying goes "When in Rome..." so today started off with a tour of Moet et Chandon, one of the oldest and most productive champagne houses in the business. Of course the tour finishes with a glass of bubbly. Then it was on to the next champagne house up the street (Avenue de Champagne) to try a few of their products. These 'houses' are beautiful historic buildings, elaborately decorated for the sole purpose of promoting champagne.
Dom Perignon was a monk, a cellerier in fact, at the Abbaye d'HautVillers just north of Epernay. He didn't invent champagne, in fact he was trying to keep the bubbles out of the wine. He wasn't blind, and did not invent the cork enclosure. He was, however, responsible for incorporating many improvements into the process of wine making (Belgian glass, harvesting and blending techniques). We paid him a visit. Well, we toured the abbey and the village. Then we bought a small bottle of Rose and proceeded to sip champagne on the terrace of the vintner overlooking Epernay. Everyone should do this at least once. Penny (our neighbour and lover of bubbly) should do this once a week. This day was a highlight of our travels through Northern France. The cycling, the vistas, the quiet little village, the history, the bubbly... what a day. I have not lost anymore articles of clothing. The therapy seems to be going well (see previous blog).