A sparkling weekend in Champagne: Épernay, Aÿ and beyond
A weekend from Reims: a small train through Mercier’s chalk cellars, de Venoge and Veuve Clicquot in the glass, and the growers in Aÿ I ran out of time to visit.
The places behind the wine
I travel to see where a wine comes from: the soil, the weather and the people who make it, everything the French fold into the word terroir. These are my notes from Champagne, Chablis, Menorca and Cyprus.
Where I’ve been
Every region I’ve written about, by country. Open one to read its stories.
From the road
Tasting Cyprus at Tsiakkas Winery
A winding climb into the Troodos hills, a guided tasting of six wines shaped by altitude, and a chance meeting with our guide Anastasia at a London wine show.
Binifadet: a Menorcan winery with rocky soils, sea breezes and a cellar carved into the rock
A walk through Menorca’s red, stony vineyards, the orange Chardonnay that surprised me most, and a long island lunch on the terrace at Binifadet.
My journey to Chablis: cool climate, pure expression
I tasted my way through seven Chablis cellars and learned how a few metres of slope, from windy Petit Chablis plateaus to the grand cru amphitheatre, change the glass.
Is your region worth the trip?
If you make or promote wine there, I’d love to hear about it. And if you’re planning a trip of your own, I’m happy to suggest where to taste.
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