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 French Wineries and Tours
At Epernay you will visit the prestigious wine cellars of Moet & Chandon with the opportunity to taste their reputed wine. The cellars visit is a walking tour. The cellars can be cold so please dress warmly.
Food and wine are a huge part of life in France and the area of Bordeaux is no exception. In fact, wine tasting in Bordeaux, one of the premier wine regions of France, is a truly wonderful experience and one of the most memorable of your time in this wine tasting hub. Tour Ginestet wine merchant's cellar and enjoy a tasting lunch and tour of two lovely vineyard estates on the outskirts of the city. You will be visiting among the following vineyards: Chateau Baret
(Villenave d'Ornon) Tour the fairytale Chateau Agassac with an ipod and discover your 'oenological sign' at the futuristic La Winery in Arsac - a completely new way of discovering the wines of Bordeaux and the Medoc wine Country. Enjoy a picnic lunch in the pine forest near La Winery.
Spend a night of indulgence in Reims, the heart of the Champagne region, only 100 miles (160 kilometers) north east of Paris. Easily accessible by car (1.5 hours) or by the new TGV link (45 minutes), a visit to the city is within reach if you are staying in Paris.
Highlights
Conveniently located only 2 minutes from downtown Reims and just a few kilometers from the region's renowned vineyards, The Assiette Champenoise, set within a peaceful 4 acre park, will entertain you with refined luxury and gourmet indulgence. Your package includes a Reims City Pass is valid for 1 month from time of collection and gives you entrance to a variety of different museums. You can also visit the cellars of a famous champagne house (Mumm, Pommery, Piper Heidsieck, Taittinger, Martel, Canard Duchene), including a tasting, and get the chance to discover the famous "Biscuits Roses" made by the Maison Fossier.
(Select a month from our reservations page to view a calendar of availability and departure details.) Every Wednesday, three chateaux take turns to open to the public to show off their prestigious Medoc wines, distinguished by the 1855 Classification. If you've ever enjoyed a glass of red, you won't want to miss the chance to sample the best of the best. The chateaux include: Chateau Branaire-Ducru (Saint-Julien)
Calling all wine lovers! Don't miss the chance to visit the heart of Bordeaux's premier wine-growing region the marvelous Medoc. This art and wine tour takes you to three famous wineries: Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, Chateau Lynch-Bages and Chateau d'Arsac.
Highlights
Lunch is included to make your indulgent day out complete.
Take a day out to visit one of the world's most famous wine regions, Saint-Emilion, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You'll sample the region's fine wines, take a cellar tour and visit the medieval village of Saint-Emilion.
Highlights
The day begins with a tour of a Classified Growth (Clos Fourtet or Chateau Beau-Sejour Becot) in the Saint-Emilion appellation, followed by a wine grower's lunch at Chateau Haut-Sarpe. Your excursion ends with a visit to the medieval town of Saint-Emilion and its underground monuments.
Located in the heart of the champagne region, the House of Mumm, which was established in 1827, welcomes visitors for a tour of the cellars where some 25 million bottles are stored. On this fascinating tour of the cellars, you will be shown the main stages involved in the production of the famous Mumm champagne. You can also spend some time in one of the finest museums dedicated to Champagne production. At the end of the tour, enjoy tasting the famous G.H Mumm Cordon Rouge for yourself. You can choose from two tasting options: Vintage - tasting of the signature Cordon Rouge and Cordon Rouge Vintage Grand Cru - tasting of three G.H Mumm Champagnes including Mumm de Cramant, Mumm Grand Cru and Mumm Brut Ros�
With the three day Champagne Express Package you have the choice of accommodation in Reims to suit your budget with either a 2 or 3 star hotel available, both including buffet breakfast. Take advantage of a day ticket offering unlimited travel on the local bus network which allows you to explore the city until midnight at your own pace. Your package also includes a tasting at 3 of the areas most well known Champagne houses including Mumm, Pommery, Taittinger, Martel and Canard Duchene. Located approximately 100 miles (160 kilometers) north east of Paris, Reims is an ancient city, dating back to 80 BC and is the gateway to the famous Champagne region of France. There are a number of caves in Reims where Champagne is aged in near-perfect conditions for it. Easily accessible by car (1.5 hours) or by the new TGV link (45 minutes), a visit to the city is within reach if you are staying in Paris. Rhone Valley A large number of medals and awards, as well as the recognition by a clientele of wine-lovers in France and in many overseas countries, have rewarded our constant search for quality, elegance and distinction. Convinced that the essence of every wine derives from the considerable diversity, due to climate and geology, of vineyards throughout the Rhone Valley, Delas pays great attention to the specific character of each one. Whether it be grapes of its own estates or those purchased, the plots from
the best vineyards are vinified and matured separately before being blended, in
order to bring out the nature of the wines from each appellation. These combinations produce the richness of the Delas palette of wines. In order to have a series of benchmarks and to see how the wines evolve in time, Delas keeps a wine-library where these treasures mature. Clustered around Riquewihr, the 27 hectare vineyard worked by Dopff & Irion is extremely well situated. The different types of soil and the varied climate means we are able to produce rich, powerful, complex wines. Each of the terroirs is studied and managed independently. Therefore the grapes and the rootstock in particular are planted according to the nature of the soil and the direction in which the vineyard is facing. Loire Valley Founded by Edouard Langlois and his wife Jeanne Chateau and run today by Michel Villedey, the Maison Langlois-Chateau has kept its family character. Specialised from the beginning in making "fine bubble" wines, Langlois-Chateau has developed little by little these vineyards. A range of "still" wines is also produced in a selection of Loire valley appellation controlees. Langlois-Chateau has been developing "fine bubbles" wines like this under the name Cremant de Loire, an appellation that requires manual picking, lighter pressing, longer maturing and adding its own quality standards to the appellations' requirements. Langlois-Chateau also makes "still" wines from vineyards it runs in Saumur -Domaine
Langlois-Chateau, Saumur-Champigny-Chateau de Varrains, Sancerre -Chateau de
Fontaine-Audon or that it controls in Muscadet - Domaine de Grand-Maison.
Burgundy
The vineyards, devastated in 1885 by the phylloxera crisis, were then nearly practically extinct. Starting in the early 1980's, the vineyards were gradually replanted. Their present fame dates from that decade. Wanting to insure that the quality of the Grands Crus of Chablis would be preserved and wishing to see a stricter code of ethics in viticulture shared by all, Maison Joseph Drouhin decided in 2001 to rejoin the "Union des Grands Crus de Chablis" (U.G.C.C.). The members of this association pledge to respect these production methods stated in the charter: control of the yields, authorized plantings, protection of the environment and tracing of origin for all products. Our champagne wines first vintage are coaxed from the grapes by Daniel Laurent vine grower in Avenay Val of Gold (between Epernay and Reims). Our wines have appeared several times in the guides, Hachette and Dussert-Geber. We are pleased to present our Champagnes to you. They have been produced in the purest Champagne Tradition. Our Champagnes come exclusively from vines we care for on the Soil of Avenay-Valley-in Or. Our first harvest vines are located in the South-eastern part of the slope of Ay. Our wines result from the following three type of vines in Champagne: The Black Pinot (black grape), producing a wine with some fruit flavours. The Miller (black grape) produces the fruitiest wines. The Chardonnay (white grape) has delicate, fine flavours of dried fruits, and its wine is sharp and fresh to the tongue. This winery is a highlight of Wine tourism in the Gironde area. Situated on the heights of the watersheds between the catchment areas of the Dordogne and the Garonne rivers, the Chateau de Lugagnac has a history going back to the Hundred Years' War. Although partially rebuilt in the 15th and again in the 17th century, it has retained its authenticity and its elegance. The domain of Lugagnac covers 180 ha (430 acres): 80 ha of wines and the rest meadow and woodland. It is about 1 km from the town of Pellegrue and 3 km from the magnificent abbey of Saine-Ferme. The owners invite you to share their passion for wine made by following the traditions of their region. They extend an invitation for those travelling through their region to visit their modern winery and taste their wines. Heinrich and Monique Luddecke sold their mixed farm in the Hanover region in Lower Saxony to come to the Bordeaux region at the end of 1994. They purchased the Chateau Perayne, an estate (independent winery and private
limited company) with a large impressive house and original outbuildings
surrounding an inner courtyard perched on the Garonne slopes in the Saint-Macaire
district. All these wines are marketed in direct sales in France and abroad, and sold in bulk. The storage building for bottles and barrels has been very tastefully restored to ensure, in the best conditions, direct private sales in France and abroad, which, given a new impetus by these new owners, have greatly expanded.
In the heart of Southwest France, the slopes of the Cotes du Marmandais look down onto the banks of the Garonne River. The gentle curve of the hills draws the winegrowing landscape of the appellation. All wines bear the character of the region where they were born and ours are in the image of the Marmandais area: pleasant and warm, powerful, generous and sincere. No complicated words or grand speeches, only a passion of dedication to our craft, the winegrowers of the Marmandais region want one thing, to offer you a moment of real emotion and pleasure. The Cotes du Marmandais appellation has a very distinctive feature. It is cut in two by the Garonne River, with its vineyards stretching out along the hillsides above the left and right banks. The bottom of the valley is a zone without vines separating the two winegrowing areas. For decades, the history of the two sides of the valley was written separately. On the right bank, close to the town of Marmande, the winegrowers naturally had close links with the town and its history, choosing its cloister as their emblem to be featured on their Cuvees. On the left bank, the growers organised themselves around the winery in Cocumont and its now-legendary Romanesque church. Cocumont - a strange name and a strange story explained briefly in the following lines. Some wise Benedictine monks on their way from Conques stopped here on hearing the call of a cuckoo. Whether the sign was of divine origin or brought on by wine, nobody knows, but they decided to build a church on this spot and plant vines. The place was named Coculo Monte : Cuckoo's Mount! History or legend? One thing is sure; the 11th-century church is still there today!
Chantegrive's wines are now known and drunk all over the world. They can be found on the "cartes" of the most prestigious restaurants. Chateau de Chantegrive is a member of the Union of Bordeaux's Grands Crus. Le Chateau de Chantegrive, one of the largest estates in the Graves area, was named after a well-known bird, the "grive musicienne" or songthrush. At harvest time, songthrushes frequently visit the vineyard's sunny, south-facing slopes, where they love to gorge themselves on the delicious, sun-ripened grapes. Hence the name "Chantegrive." M. and Mme Leveque's use both traditional vine-growing and wine-making methods, and the most modern winemaking techniques in creating their excellent wines. The Gaillac vineyard is situated in the Tarn department (one of the oldest of France). The Albert family invites you to share their love of good wines in this magnificent surrounding through the discovery of a complete range of wines elaborated and bottled in the domain by their own care. Let yourself be surprised by a beaded white, captivated by a late harvest soft white, and charmed by a red wine, bursting with sunshine, wines whose reputations exceeds our borders. The Domaine de Labarthe is situated on the Castanet parish in the Gaillac region, on the hillside of the right banks of the Tarn river. It is 10 kms away from the medieval city of Cordes (XIIIth Century), 15 kms away from Albi, Toulouse-Lautrec hometown and 15 kms away from Carmaux (Cap'Decouverte).
Aquitaine Gaillac is the prestigious "appellation" of the wines of the South West, which comprise the main vineyards located along the valleys of the Garonne River and its tributaries. Situated between the Aquitaine and the Languedoc, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, the Pyrenees and the Massif Central, these vineyards - often very old but either underrated or too long ignored - have very distinct personalities, reflecting the diverse influences encountered over the centuries. The vineyard of Gaillac ranges along the slopes of the Tarn valley. Although it owes its expansion to the creation by tenth century Benedictine monks of the very powerful and influential St Michel Abbey, its entry into the world of appellations controlees is fairly recent: by decree of 23rd October 1970. The "Domaine de Pialentou" is located on the terraces of the left bank of the Tarn, in Brens, just a bridge away from Gaillac. These west/north-west facing slopes, characterised by pebbles, silts and gravel are 180 metres above sea level and 50 metres above the level of the Tarn. Their vines enjoy one of the sunniest locations in the appellation. We are happy to answer any questions about Domaine de Pialentou and its
wines. For further information, please do not hesitate to contact us. Chateau de Crain is situated right at the heart of the Bordeaux wine-growing
region, in the "Entre-Deux-Mers" picturesque area, bordered, as its name
implies, by two waterways, the Dordogne on the north and the Garonne on the
south. Michel Fougere The development of the Pomerol vineyard in the 12th century up to the French Revolution of 1789 around the commandary of the Knights of St John of Jerusalem, Rhodes and Malta is confirmed by very old documents from the Great Priory of Malta in Toulouse. The present day Chateau GAZIN, which was once a village in the 18th century,
is located on the site of the hospital built by the Knights to host the pilgrims
on their way to Santiago de Compostella. The estate can produce up to 100,000 bottles a year. A second AOC Pomerol
wine �l�Hospitalet de Gazin�, was created in 1986 in order to reserve the best
of the harvest for Chateau Gazin. After bottling at the
chateau, the wine is shipped in wooden cases to the consumers worldwide. 80% of
Chateau GAZIN production is exported. Located in the famous Medoc wine region, about 40 kilometers north-west of the city of Bordeaux, the vineyard of Chateau Latour belongs to the Pauillac appellation. The quality of its wine depends partly on the type of grape variety that is being used, but also on the exceptional combination of natural elements (geography, geology and climate) that constitutes its "terroir". Vine-growers and tractor drivers work all year
round on the 600,000 vine-plants (about 10,000 per hectare) of Chateau Latour. March-April : replacing of the defective "carrassons" (wood peg), "acanage" (tying up the vine-plants) and bending the branches; End of April-May : complantation, which
means vine by vine and not by complete plot, when it is dead or in decline.
Therefore vines of very different ages can be found in the same plot. Replanting a complete plot is then decided when it has reached its limits, i.e. when the land needs to "rest" for one or two years. On average, a parcel of 2 hectares should be replanted every four years. When the choice of the parcel to replant has been made, one stops planting new vines eight years before its complete removal. At the edge of Pauillac... On the soil of Saint-Estephe, the vines of Lilian-Ladouys are to be found where the roads meet, a stone's throw from the Graves of Cos d'Estournel and the Chateau Lafite-Rothschild. With its elegant Directory Charterhouse, the Lilian-Ladouys Chateau expresses a generous idea of Medoc's durability, a close union between the crop the wine itself. The Estate of La Doys was spoken of as early as 1654, "the fiefdom" of Jacques de Bercoyan, Lord of Lafite, a magistrate in Medoc at the time. In the XVIIIth century, the Barre family bought the estate and continued to run it for over 150 years. It was they who gave the Chateau its identity and character. With its relaunch, Lilian-Ladouys has set itself such ambitious targets. Georges Pauli is holding the conductor's baton. Beginning with harvesting itself, great care is taken in collecting the grapes, that are selected from specific plots, taking account of the age of the vines, and of course, the grape variety. This flexibility helps in making the prime blend which will go to make the Great Wine of the Chateau At Lilian-Ladouys. The young vines, producing the casks that are just a little less successful, will provide the second wine, the chateau de la Devise de Lilian which makes up about 25% of the harvest.
The harmony and variety of the grapes of Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is unique in the Pauillac appellation. It is without doubt the proportion of grape varieties that endows the wine with such longevity and such an exceptional character, without the slightest hint of hardness. The 45% Cabernet Sauvignon give the wine its structure and robustness, and thus its longevity. Recent tastings of the old vintages such as 1875, 1893, 1900 have shown that, with their astonishing youth, the potential for ageing of the wines of Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. 35% Merlot: a surprising percentage and quite inhabitual in an appellation which normally uses Cabernet Sauvignon. "My uncle Louis liked a lot of variety of wines" explains May Eliane de Lencquesaing, "it gives colour, roundness and suppleness, distinctive traits of the wines of this domain". The 12% of Cabernet Franc gives a well balanced wine with a fruity bouquet, firm and clear in youth, which melts well in the preparation of the cuvee during ageing. The 8% of Petit Verdot brings freshness and great aromatic complexity and spices to the wine. In very sunny years such as 1982, 1986, 1989 and 1990, in which the grapes reach excellent maturity, it has a remarkable influence. Bordeaux Jean-Fran�ois de Pontet, royal governor of the Medoc, combined several vineyard plots in Pauillac in the early 18th century. Years later, his descendants added neighbouring vines in a place named Canet. This was the beginning of one of the largest estates in the Medoc, which quite naturally added the name of its founder to that of the land registry reference. A century later, Pontet-Canet was included in the famous 1855 classification, thereby confirming its membership among the elite of the Medoc. This privileged position did not go unnoticed by one of the most important Bordeaux shippers of the time, Hermann Cruse, who bought the estate in 1865. He built new cellars, modernised the winemaking facilities, and established the wine's reputation around the world. The Cruse family owned Pontet-Canet for 110 years, until another shipper (from Cognac this time), Guy Tesseron, acquired it in 1975. Currently owned by Guy Tesseron's sons, Alfred and Gerard, this means that Pontet-Canet has belonged to only three families in over two centuries. Thirty years after their arrival in Pauillac, the Tesserons can be proud of having gradually restructured the entire vineyard as well as renovating the cellars and service buildings. Bordeaux Born into a family of winegrowers who have owned Domaine de Bouteilley since 1617, Jean Guillot founded his trading company in 1953. Jean Guillot is a 100% family-owned limited company run by Jean Louis Guillot (CEO) and his brother Christophe Guillot (director of vineyards), both sons of Jean. With their five properties, Jean Guillot bottle and sell a vast range of brand wines, chateau wines and Crus Classes. Chateau de Bouteilley has belonged to the Guillot family since 1617. This estate is set on the clay-limestone hillsides of Yvrac. Vinification is performed in an ultra-modern vat house equipped with stainless steel vats designed on a special model (Jean Guillot patent) which allows permanent, efficient control over fermentation temperatures and high-quality maceration. A "cuvee prestige" is matured in oak barrels. Perched on the
vineyards 4 kilometres to the south of
Epernay, Chavot is part of what is
undoubtedly one of the most remarkable landscapes in Champagne. The church was built around 1202, with
stones taken from an old castle on the Mont Felix, which had been destroyed
shortly before. The philosophy of our estate responds to certain criteria : respect for traditions by bringing together rigorous standards and passion, a constant search for perfection in order to continually improve our wines, and originality in offering authentic wines. Drinking champagne in Epernay is like listening to Mozart in Salzburg
A major step in Champagne-making, riddling consists in getting the sediment
(residue of in-bottle fermentation) to slide into the bottle�s neck. |
Wine Country
Welcome
|
Champagne
Region Day Trip
Bordeaux
Wine and Culinary Tour
Overnight
Treasure and Champagne in Reims Package
Medoc
1855 Classification Premium Wine Tasting Day Trip
Medoc
Art and Wine Day Trip
Saint-Emilion
Wine Tasting Day Trip
G.H.
Mumm Champagne House Cellar Tour
Three
Day Champagne Express Package
Dopff
& Iriom Winery
Laurent-Gabriel
Winery
Chateau
de Lugagnac Winery
Chateau
Perayne Winery
Welcome
to the Cave du Marmandais Winery
Chateau
de Chantegrive Winery
Domaine
de Labarthe Winery
Domaine
de Pialentou Winery
Chateau
de Crain Winery
Chateau
Gazin Winery
Chateau
Latour Winery
Lilian-Ladouys
Chateau Winery
Pichon
Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Winery
Pontet-Canet
Winery
Jean
Guillot Winery
Laherte Freres
Winery
Leclerc
Briant Winery