Sunday: We had been invited to join friends who had hired a gite near the hamlet of Priez on the western edge of Champagne country.
Bumble bees alive and well in the garden
Would be lovely in summer out here – sadly not the weather for sitting outside for breakfasts or lunches
The rear courtyardWhat is written on this roof joist? And by whom? And why?Made in Paris
Our first evening together was of course a lively affair…we thought we had catered sufficiently for the group of 10 with a dozen bottles of wine, beer, pastis, breads and cheeses. However, the night drew to a close with not much left on the table and a few sore heads in the morning!
Monday: We left early for our first day learning about champagne with two tours that couldn’t have been more dissimilar. The first was to a relatively small, family run producer called Champagne Jacquinot.
Jean-Manuel passionately telling us his family story – he is the third generationChris and David listen intentlyOn our tour – some of this champagne is currently on a boat to SydneyRose champagne during its first fermentationMrs A, and behind the original concrete vatsThe steep stairwell down to the hand-dug chalk caves
What a great way to learn about the complicated business of growing, harvesting, cellaring, fermenting, and finally bottling this product. For many of this the big takeaway was the impact that climate change is having on all the growers in the region. More variation, less predictability in weather patterns and hotter temperatures all serve to narrow the window for growing and harvesting as one example.
The tour was so eloquently given by the grandson of the man who established the business. He took us down into the cellars, dug in 1873 out of the chalk layer that enables the champagne region here to produce the amazing vintages that it does. It was so good to see a small business doing so well. Demand is strong and the production tightly controlled to ensure a sustainable future, even with the climatic impacts they face.
Champagne stored to allow sediment to fall to the head of the bottleGraffiti in the chalk cellar wallsBeautiful coloured rose bottlesA tasting session before we head to lunchTeam photo
After a typically French lunch, except for how quickly we had to get through the three delicious courses, we were off to the next tasting at the by contrast very expansive and “Corporate” house of Mercier. You are likely to recognise their logo, they distribute all over the world.
It was a total contrast to the last place with an almost Disneyland like approach to showing us through their extensive cellars…on an underground train!
Mr A admiring some of the 18km of underground cellars full of champagneRecorded stories in English timed with the train ride through the cavesLiterally millions of dollars worth of champagne down hereSculptures and relief artwork carved in to the wallsMachines which take away the need to turn the bottles by handOne of the many relief carvings
When it came to the tasting I wasn’t sure to what extent my lack of excitement about the flavours was contextual or “real”. What I mean by that is I think tasting wine is so influenced in my case by what I am thinking and feeling at the time, who I am with, my engagement with whoever is presenting the wine and so on. It felt like quite a bland presentation to be honest, by people who seemed to have little passion for their product. And so the champagne tasted the same…how much of that was in my head or in the bottle?
Mr A sharing some thoughts with SteveChris holding court over champagneTeam photo of course
It’s a fascinating industry, clearly Epernay is doing very well. The place oozed money and presented a really smart brand for the this oh so French business. Grateful to be able to experience it with old friends and making new ones.
One of many champagne brands along Rue du ChampagneViews across the vineyards as we headed back to our farmhouseAlmost team photo
Location: Newhaven Ferry Port, Dieppe, Grandvilliers, Saint- Quentin, Longpont, France
Thursday: The day had finally arrived to board our ferry across to France. We originally booked our tickets while visiting my dad in New Zealand, and it seemed so far away. We had sat there wondering what would have happened to us in the intervening five months…an awful lot as it turned out!
We had not had the best night’s sleep. While sleeping at the port seemed like a good idea (and we were not the only motorhome to do so), the night was punctuated by the arrival of multiple heavy goods vehicles running their engines and freight trains moving to and from the port.
Nevertheless, a crisp clear morning greeted us, blue skies and light winds seeing us off from England.
Truffy all ready to boardPassports checked and tickets in hand…Into the belly of the ‘Seven Sisters’ we drive
The three hour journey went without incidence, and we pulled off the boat in Dieppe reminding ourselves to drive on the right and give way to the left on roundabouts. Finally our left hand drive truck was coming into its own.
Both tired, we decided not to drive too far on our first evening. Those of you unfamiliar with travelling by motorhome in France will probably not have noticed the ‘Aires de camping car’ in many of the small towns and villages. These are designated areas for motor homes with often four or five parking spots. Sometimes there is the option for a couple of hours of electricity (around €2) and drinking water, which is often free. Generally there will be a drain to dump your grey water (showers/dishwashing) and a dump-point for your black water (toilet).
We selected a random one from an app which had good reviews and drove over.
The village of Grandvilliers sits on the far northern outskirts of Paris, and is fairly unremarkable. We had a stroll around the village and bought some bread from an artisan bakery before retiring for the night.
Hotel de France
Wonky old house along the road from where we parked up
Loving the tulipsA beautiful array of tulips on the entrance to a mechanic’s workshopMonsieur A very proud of his ‘Je voudrais du pain s’il vous plaît’
Friday: A bit of research of the area revealed nothing too exciting for us to aim for, so we picked another location in the general direction of the Champagne region we’re heading to. Either there are no towns of note here, or nobody is writing about them (probably the latter!)!
We drove through relatively flat countryside, mostly growing rape seed for canola oil and various other vegetables, and ended up at another small town, Saint-Quentin.
Picturesque patchwork of fields on our driveDriving along a straight Roman road
Saint-Quentin has a long history and was originally founded by the Romans in around the 4th century. Many of the roads we drove to get there were dead straight, a clue to this history. Apparently many Roman artifects and coins are still found in the surrounding fields and properties. This town has a bit of a tragic story, with more than half of its population killed during the great plague and during World War II 80% of the town was destroyed or severely damaged as it was part of the German Hindenburg Line.
Today it is a peaceful centre, with a train line into Paris taking just under two hours, and the Canal du Nord taking water borne traffic through town. Our aires for the night was right beside the canal, so we decided to jump on the bikes for an explore.
Despite the grey day, a picturesque cyclePotential to go a long way…we stuck to 20km
Other than a few rowers, there was little traffic on the water, perhaps a bit early in the season for barges. We were interested to see that the canal near here heads underground for a few kilometres. In the early days, it took hours to travel through the 5 or so kilometres but today it is traversed using a chain boat. We didn’t make it up as far as the tunnel.
Saturday: The temperature plunged to 3 degrees centigrade overnight which made for a slow emergence from bed. We really miss the warm bedspread we left with my mum in Hastings, but are hoping that nights this cold will be few and far between as we head south.
We drove to the town of Soissons where there was a choice of large supermarkets to choose from. There we did a huge shop for 10 people – tomorrow is Sunday and French shops will be closed, and we are joining a group of friends who are staying nearby in a house. Somehow we managed to make a whole trolley load of purchases disappear into Truffy, and set off for our night’s destination.
It was not too far to drive to the little village of Longpont. The village is very pretty and dominated by the ruins of an old abbey which was active between 1131 and 1793. It was open to be visited, but with looming black clouds and no roof on the abbey we retreated to a nearby pub instead. Are you surprised?
Abbaye de Longpont – ancient ruined monasteryCan almost imagine the stained glass in this grand windowThe old entranceway, several hundred years oldMr A already half way to the pubOne pastis and one vin rouge, merci boucoupUn chien noirFairytale French village…
The Forest of Retz is close by to here, an ancient woodland which has been under protection since 1672, quite rare for Europe where forest was seen as something to cut down and use for fuel or clear for agriculture. Hopefully the rain will hold off so we can go for a stroll tomorrow before we head to Priez, our home for the next few days.
As for tonight, we’re sheltering from the showers (currently marble sized hail!) and are going to enjoy an Italian red (yes, I know, blasphemy in France) with a home made Pad Thai. Bon soir!