Epernay, France

Did you know that champagne can only be called champagne if it is from the Champagne region of France? Well, I decided I had to taste some of this real champagne, instead of “sparkling wine” like I have had in the states. Thus, my friends and I decided to go taste the stars, also known as champagne tasting.

Since it technically is the off-season for traveling, many of the champagne cellars in Epernay, France were closed for construction or refurbishment to open up again in 2015. We very quickly figured out why not many people travel to go wine tasting during this time of the year. I’m almost positive the weather was around 40 ºF and raining. My girl friend and I decided to wear dresses and sandals because we wanted to look all classy for the champagne tasting experience… that ended up being a terrible decision. I was so cold and my feet were basically numb walking from the train station to champagne cellar. You can’t tell from the picture below, but it was actually raining when we took this picture.

Smiling through the pain 🙂

Our group was so relieved when we finally made it to Champagne Mercier, the French winery where we did our cellar tour and champagne tasting. This winery was the original rights owner to the name Dom Perignon but gave the brand to a different French winery in the 1900s. It is also the best-selling champagne in France! Champagne Mercier first became popular by making the world’s largest wine barrel, filling it with champagne equaling 200,000 bottles, and taking it to Paris for the World Fair. This was the same year that the Eiffel Tower was showcased. Many say that it was overshadowed by only the Eiffel Tower.

In front of the huge barrel!

View of the barrel from the back

We were lucky enough to take a tour of the champagne cellars in the winery. We watched a short video about the winery and then went down into the cellars for our cellar tour. These cellars cover over 18 kilometers long and 30 meters below ground. We took a train around all of the cellars and got to learn more about how champagne is made and aged.

Champagne Mercier!

Dom Perignon on the wall

After the cellar tour, we got to the fun part: champagne tasting. My friends and I got to taste both the Brut and the Rosé. They were both quite delicious, although I think I preferred the Brut.

The Brut!

The Rosé!

Feeling classy with our champagne flutes

I had a fantastic time wine tasting in France and would love to come back and do it when I’m older and can enjoy it with some sunshine!