The Comité Régional de Tourisme de Champagne-Ardenne, in partnership with the Via-Voyage agency, presents the “OenoPass© Champagne”: a genuine tourism promotion product at the heart of terroir and trends.
Thanks to its exceptional range of tours, the OenoPass© transforms wine-tasting escapades into a journey of the senses, through the unsuspected gastronomic and cultural riches of the region.
For its launch, we’ve taken you to some of the region’s finest cellars to taste some exceptional champagnes.
The oenopass, an innovative and easy-to-use product
The OenoPass© Champagne offers a choice of visits that you can select according to your desires and budget. It is available in 2 versions: 5 visits for €25 or 10 visits for €50 (€25 until the end of the year), to be chosen from rigorously selected Route du Champagne service providers:
– Domaine Pommery and Villa Demoiselle
– Maison G.H. MUMM
– the Verzenay Lighthouse – Vineyard Museum
– la Maison De Castellane
– J. de Telmont House
– Maison Bonnaire
– the Cristallerie Royale de Champagne and the Crystal Museum
– the De Barfontarc cooperative
– the Maison Drappier
– the Maison Guy de Forez
It is sold on www.oenopass.net or from www.tourisme-champagne-ardenne.com. Once the pass has been purchased, a nominative voucher is sent by e-mail. Visitors then have 1 year to complete the visits.
To help visitors make the right choice for their wine tourism holidays, the services are accompanied by an interactive catalog (English, Dutch and German versions will be available in the 2nd half of 2012). OenoPass© Champagne thus meets the expectations of French, European and international customers looking for themed stays around wine, terroir, culture and heritage.
For all tourist information about Champagne-Ardenne: www.tourisme-champagne-ardenne.com
Here are two of the three magical places we discovered:
Maison J. de Telmont
Established since 1912 in Damery, in the heart of the vineyards near Epernay, Maison J. de Telmont is one of the last entirely family-run Champagne Houses.
Heirs to a family of true Champagne winegrowers, Maison J. de Telmont boasts 36 hectares of prestigious vineyards, planted with the three great Champagne grape varieties: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
For 4 generations, J. de Telmont has cultivated the Art of Receiving with desire and dynamism. So we took the time to discover the art of champagne-making.
The art of wine-making:
Champagne-making begins in the vineyard.
These grapes are hand-picked during the harvest, a moment when the work of the vine and that of the wine are truly united. These fragile grapes are then taken to our presses. One to 1.5 kilos of grapes are needed for a bottle of champagne.
These wines are tasted by the team of oenologists and the Chef de Caves, then blended to create the different cuvées in the J. de Telmont range.
When these different blends are bottled, the liqueur de tirage, made up of ferments and sugars, is added. This liqueur de tirage then triggers the second alcoholic fermentation: “la prise de mousse”. The carbon dioxide produced during this second fermentation cannot escape. This is the birth of the bubbles in Champagne.
But patience is essential: Champagne needs time to develop its aromas, style and character. After several months – or even years – in the cellars, the bottles are stirred to extract the deposits. This is the riddling stage, nowadays carried out by machine. Riddling is still carried out manually for Prestige cuvées.
At the end of this riddling stage, the liqueur d’expédition is added, a skilful blend of sugar and Champagne. After a few months’ rest in our cellars, the champagnes are finally ready to be enjoyed.
And that’s just what we’ve done:
Le Grand Vintage
This is the Champagne for special occasions and Champagne meals par excellence.
Current vintage: 2004
Le Blanc de Blancs
Connoisseurs enjoy discovering the exceptional qualities of this great Champagne before a meal.
Current vintage: 2005
After a visit to the cellars of J De Telmont and lunch at the traditional Café du Palais, it’s time to discover the house of Vranken Pommery.
The Pommery estate boasts 18Km of magnificent galleries created in magnificent chalk pits. Sculptures have been carved into the stone to pay tribute to this illustrious house and its past. Today, Pommery produces 15 million bottles. Madame Pommery created the brut in 1874.
Cette publication est également disponible en : Français (French)
