The region
Champagne is a historic landscape in north-eastern France that is famous all over the world for its sparkling wine, which can only be called champagne if it was produced in the region.
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The cultivation area was determined in 1927, it covers only a small part of the total agricultural area.
Around 300 million bottles of bottle fermentation are produced here each year, mainly from grapes of the Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay varieties, almost half of which the French drink themselves.
Source: WORLD infographic
The most important wineries and the champagne capitals Reims and Épernay are today connected by the
Route Touristique du Champagne
, which criss-crosses the hilly landscape over a length of 600 kilometers.
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If you don't just want to spend your days in wine cellars and tastings, there are other attractions in the area that was declared a World Heritage Site in 2015: for example the Notre-Dame de Reims cathedral, where the French kings were crowned until the 19th century or Troyes old town, famous for its half-timbered houses.
Crocodile fabric
Before champagne gave wings to the local economy and tourism, Champagne was a center for textiles in the 16th and 17th centuries.
What remains of it: Lacoste produces clothing in Troyes - as one of the few companies in France.
The
Made-in-France collection
is marketed
with the well-known crocodile logo, as well as polo shirts, t-shirts and hoodies.
Made in champage: Lacoste shirts
Source: WORLD infographic
Monk with bottle
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In front of the steps to the altar of the abbey church in the village of Hautvillers, nicely situated in the hilly landscape of Montagne de Reims, a simple grave slab is set into the ground.
Dom Pierre Pérignon, who was stylized as the “inventor” of sparkling wine in Champagne, is buried underneath.
In any case, the Benedictine monk was instrumental in ensuring that the pearly bubbles lingered in the wine when he experimented with bottle fermentation in the 17th century.
This process went down
in history
as the
Méthode champenoise
.
The inventor of champagne fermentation is buried in this abbey
Source: AFP via Getty Images
The reason for filling the wine in thick-walled bottles was originally pragmatic: it was easier to transport than in barrels.
The actually unintentional fermentation initially turned the bottles into small bombs that blew up every now and then during the trip.
For fear of explosions, the cellar masters wore iron masks.
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A life-size statue of Dom Pierre Pérignon stands in Épernay in front of the Moët & Chandon house, which has named a champagne brand after him.
Church with a lake
You can also swim in Champagne - in Lac du Der-Chantecoq, France's largest reservoir, almost half the size of the Müritz.
It was dammed from the mid-1960s to protect the Marne Valley and Paris from flooding.
Three villages sank into the floods, the church of Champaubert was preserved by a dam.
The remains of several villages can be found at the bottom of the lake
Source: Getty Images
The lake was inaugurated in 1974. Bathers and birds soon discovered the new body of water in the sparsely populated northeast.
Its banks now line campsites, beaches and a harbor for pleasure boats.
Some guests sit down for a
champagne picnic
.
Bird lovers enjoy the spectacle in autumn, which more than 200,000 cranes organize during their rest at the lake on their way to North Africa year after year.
Breaded feet
A lot sounds tempting in French, including the name of this specialty: Pieds de porc à la Sainte-Menehould.
You get served
pig's feet
, cooked in bouillon and then breaded.
The feet of the French King Charles VII are said to have been shaken during a visit to Sainte-Menehould.
Many restaurants in the village still have this delicacy on the menu.
A pig's foot
Source: WORLD infographic
100 kilometers
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That is how long the labyrinth of champagne cellars is alone in Épernay.
The entire length of the rock tunnels in Champagne, in which the bottles are kept cool, is unknown.
Some of the
tunnels were dug into the limestone rock
around 2000 years ago
- by the Romans, who had already planted vines in Champagne.
The quote
Great love affairs start with champagne and end with herbal tea
Honoré de Balzac
(1799–1850), the author of these words, was considered a bon vivant who is said to have sipped tons of sparkling wine with his muses.
It is not known whether the same amount of soothing tea flowed.
On the other hand, Balzac's penchant for another hot beverage is known: he is said to have drunk up to 50 cups of coffee per day of writing.
This text is from WELT AM SONNTAG. We are happy to deliver them to your home on a regular basis.
Source: WELT AM SONNTAG