Vineyards for as far as the eye can see

This is a view (on a cloudy day) from Hautvilliers out over the vineyards of Champagne.

Sarah and I spent a delightful weekend in the Champagne region of France. Our neighbors who live next door invited us out for the weekend to their country home. We managed very well despite rainy weather both days. They have a very cozy house in the Marne river valley, with views of vineyards on the hills out the windows. I could feel my stress level go down as soon as we got there, it was just so relaxing and inviting.

Here's some of the things we did:

Went on a champagne cellar tour in Epernay. They have a gargantuan wine casket from 1880's, it holds 200,000 barrels, and was taken dragged by oxen to the Paris fair in 1889. The tour also included a train tour of their underground cellars where they ferment and store the champagne. I now know plenty about riddling bottles and disgorging sediment.

Drove through the vineyards, and walked around Hautvilliers (pronounced "ought vee yay"). In Hautvilliers, we saw the church where Dom Perignon is buried, and the understated headquarters of Moet et Chandon (makers of Dom Perignon label).

Visited Rheims cathedral, and saw it's Chagall stained glass window. Church was in rough shape, the stone used to make it is fairly soft, and has suffered over the centuries.

Visited WWI American memorial and graveyard. This area (Belleau Bois and Chateau Thierry) was where the front between French and German troops was stalled for several years during WWI. The battles in the area became much more real to me as I listened to our neighbors stories about what happened to their relatives during the war.

Ate fantastic food. I'm always amazed by the interest and depth of knowledge that some French people have for their food. "Here, try this honey on your croissant, it was harvested in an area where a lot of chestnuts are grown, and that gives it an interesting flavor", and also a long discussion on why biodiversity in types of apples being grown is important. We have a wonderful homemade egg-chevre-thyme tarte, mixed greens with sauteed chestnuts and smoked bacon, and an intoxicating homemade poire and dark chocolate tarte with almonds.

Had a roaring fire. It was rainy most of the weekend, so our neighbors built a wonderful roaring fire in the huge fireplace. Sipping Blanc de Blanc local Champagne while staring into a roaring fire. Yum. Hard to believe in the middle of August, but it worked for us.

Our neighbors are so delightful, and so kind. It was a very memorable weekend.