The below will be our itinerary and program
for the trip to Loire Valley and Champagne.
Aug 31 (Sun)
Departing HK on early morning, we will take
the CX279 flight to Paris. Upon arrival, our driver will pick us up at the
airport to go to Montsoreau, about 3 hours on the road. We will check in to La
Marine de Loire, a hotel located in Montsoreau, at the crossroads between Anjou
and Touraine. The hotel has 11 rooms of individual design by the lady owner
Caroline Chagnaud.
After taking a short break and lunch at the
hotel, we will go for a stroll in Montsoreau, a lovely little village in the
Loire, the largest area designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in France.
We will visit Chateau de la Dame de Montsoreau along the way, which has been
recently renovated and opened to public, and the novel by Dumas was actually
based on the real events happening in this castle.
Next to the chateau is Hotel le Bussy which
has a terrace with a good view of the chateau and the river. We will stop there
for a drink before continuing to the adjacent village of Candes St Martin which
is also equally beautiful.
Returning to the hotel we will have an
introduction to the Loire Valley wine region by a sommelier, explaining this
diverse region on the range of wines it offer, including red, white, rose,
sweet and even sparkling. After that we will have dinner at the hotel.
Sep 1 (Mon)
After breakfast at the hotel, we will go to
Brissac (about one hour away) for a private tour of the castle of Brissac. The
castle is surrounded by vineyards, and higher than all the other castles in the
area, it has seven floors and 204 rooms, thus earning it the nickname of giant
Val de Loire. It is now still the residence of the 13th Duke of
Brissac.
Then we take a short ride to Domaine de Bablut
for a tour and tasting. Under the Daviau family, we will meet with Christopher
Daviau himself who is also the oenologist, and understand and share with him
the wines he made, in the vault of the old mill in the property.
We will then have lunch in front of the
Loire River, in a traditional restaurant, before embarking on a private cruise
tour on the Loire River, sampling wines when we go along the different
wine-making areas on the two banks.
Next we will go to Chateau d’Epire, one of
the oldest and most famous vineyards in Savennieres, which started since the 17th
century. We will visit the vineyards overlooking the Loire and enjoy the
Savennieres in the cellar, before having dinner at Fleur de Soleil.
Sep 2 (Tue)
After breakfast at hotel we will go to
Chateau de Breze (about 30 minutes away) for a private tour of the chateau and
its underground network. The castle was built between the 18th and
19th century, complete with stables, walkway, drawbridge, cellars
and Europe’s deepest dry moat.
Taking about 30 minute drive, we will then
visit Chateau de Targe in Saumur. The chateau has just recently celebrated its
350th anniversary and we will be able to taste the different styles
of wines under the Saumur region, including the white, rose, sparkling and the
sweet!
We will continue to explore the village,
visiting the troglodyte caves to discover the underground living of the people
and have lunch in such a site. Afterwards we take a short ride to Chateau de
Parnay, with the interesting parallel walls where the vines grow, as built by
Antoine Cristal, and taste the wines there.
Following that we will visit a private home
in a troglodyte site, to get an experience of how people are now living in that
environment, before visiting the beautiful village of Candes St Martin on the
way back to the hotel. Dinner will be held at Diane de Meridor, savoring the
good food with the view of the Loire River.
Sep 3 (Wed)
After breakfast we will check out of the
hotel and depart for Chinon about 30 minutes away, to visit Couly Dutheil. The
estate is a good producer which a lot of prestigious restaurants in France are
stocking their wines. We will receive an introduction to the Chinon terroirs
and the varieties grown here, tasting different wines after visiting the cellars.
Next we go to Chateau du Rivau, about 30
minutes away, with a private tour to stroll in its 12 famous garden which were
all recognized by the French cultural authority, to appreciate the contemporary
sculptures along with the fairytale botanical gardens. We will also have lunch
there.
Our driver will then take us to Chateau de
Chenonceau, a short drive away, which was a royal residence built in 1513. We
will have a private tour on the property along with the museum inside, which
got some great paintings from master artists for the appreciation of the
cultural heritage of France.
Proceeding on we will go to Sancerre, to
check in at the hotel Mont Damnes, and will have dinner there. The hotel is
surrounded by beautiful countryside, forests and lakes, as well as vineyards
stretching down to the Loire River.
Sep 4 (Thu)
After breakfast we will check out of the
hotel, and walk to the nearby Bourgeois Estate. Their vineyards are divided
into 20 mini-plots based on the soil types, in the Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume
area, producing wines of different styles which we will taste a few of them.
Lunch will be served at Pomme d’Or, and
then we will take a 30 minute ride to St Andelain, to visit the famous Didier
Dagueneau Estate. Didier was one of the greatest winemakers in recent years and
unfortunately passed away in 2008, but his properties are now under his son
Louis-Benjamin. We will try some of the wines there and I think I am going to
also purchase a few to bring back home.
Finishing our tour in the Loire Valley, we
will then take the ride to Reims, about three hour drive away. Checking in at
Le Grand Hotel Continental, this is an old private mansion from the 19th
century transformed into a hotel in 1880, right at the heart of the city
centre. We will have dinner at the hotel as well.
Sep 5 (Fri)
After breakfast we will depart for a walk
around Reims, rich in the traditions of Champagne, and go to the famous
Notre-Dame Cathedral. A UNESCO World Heritage site, this 13th
century cathedral is adorned with 2303 statues, including the famous Smiling
Angel. Of 38m high, 150m long, there are also the window paintings depicting
the coronation of King Clovis, the founder of France, in Reims.
We will have lunch at Café du Palais, the
oldest café in Reims, which is currently run by a family taking up different
positions in the café. Then we will have a private visit to Taittinger, which
has been under the same family since starting in 1930, followed by a tasting.
Next we move to Ruinart, which is founded
in 1729 and got a spectacular network of underground cellars more than 30
metres down. We can feel the natural cooling temperature in the cellars where
the wines are matured, and proceed to taste the wonderful sparkling wines.
Heading back to the hotel for a short rest,
we will then have dinner at Le Jardin les Crayeres, which is an extension of
the gourmet restaurant Le Parc.
Sep 6 (Sat)
After breakfast we will head to Rilly la
Montagne, about 20 minute away, to try the different Champagne style there.
Arriving at Vilmart, we will get to understand more from the Champs family, who
has been –running the house since 1890s. All the wines are aged in oak which is
quite unique in Champagne and we will get to taste them.
We then will go to Hautvillers, the village
famous because of the celebrated monk Dom Perignon, near Epernay. First having
lunch at Au 36, a restaurant where we can also order champagne from all over
the region to accompany our food, we will then have a walk around the village
to hear about the story of how the champagne was first ‘invented’.
Moving on we will go to Cotes de Blancs,
another wine producing region which is dedicated to the production of white
grapes, for a stroll around the area before visiting Clos Veuve Fourny, to
taste the benchmark Blanc de Blancs.
Next we will visit Moet & Chandon,
seeing first-hand one of the largest wine cellars in Champagne, with tunnels
and caves storing the millions of bottles and how the wines are being made, and
then taste the sparkling wines there including the famous Dom Perignon, their
prestige cuvee.
Returning to Reims, we will have dinner at
Le Millenaire, a famous restaurant right in the centre of the town and regarded
as one of the best restaurants in Reims.
Sep 7 (Sun)
After breakfast we will check out from the
hotel and our driver will take us back to Paris in about 1.5 hours. We will
have lunch there before doing some last-minute shopping for souvenirs before
going to the airport, taking the 21:10 CX278 back to Hong Kong.
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