Our stop in Reims, France:

  I think the best part of being on a tour is the free time they give you to roam around. When you hear about Reims, I'm sure your first thought is to stop for French food and champagne, but our first stop was at the Musée de la Reddition, or the Museum of the Surrender. Now, I admit that I was never good at history back in school. I think my interest in history grew when I was in college taking Military History for my degree.

  This tiny building played an important role back in May 1945 during World War II. It holds the room where the Third Reich signed the official documents for the surrender of World War II on 7 May, 1945. The room itself is like any showcase room where you're in a plastic bubble. But you are still able to admire their extensive terrain map posted all throughout the room. It's actually pretty amazing how the world map is on the walls (they're HUGE maps, really!) The table and the 13 chairs with the name tags are still in their original positions. Throughout the building, they showcase uniforms and other artifacts from that time, and newspaper headlines from May 8th when Victory in Europe was announced.

  We then made our way to the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral of Reims. It's Gothic architecture is completely breathtaking. It's a cathedral that has served as a place for many coronations of French kings and queens, including Charles VII in 1429, the time of Joan of Arc. The construction of this beautiful building took almost 80 years to complete, starting in the year of 1210. It was meant to replace a church that had burned down the previous year. Make sure you take a gander at the stain glass windows that show scenes from the Old Testament, the Resurrection of Christ, and the Tree of Jesse. Right outside of the church, there is a statue of St. Joan of Arc, a heroine during the 100 Years War. The area was crowded with children who had just finished their First Communion or Confirmation! It was a great thing to walk in on.

  Unfortunately during our visit, the Porte Mars was hidden behind construction sheets. The Porte Mars is an ancient Roman triumphal arch that dates as far back to the third century. Hopefully when I find my way back to Reims, it will show it's beauty.

  After sightseeing, we spent the rest of our time eating food at Cafe du Palais and Amorino Gelato. Amorino Gelato is known for shaping it's cones into beautiful roses, and adding gelato macarons to the top. It was well-worth the walk!

Avenue de Champagne - the most expensive street in the world

  We ended our trip in Epernay, the home of Dom Perignon. A fun fact about the Champagne region in France, is that this is the only area where bubbly is allowed to be called champagne. Any other bubbly made elsewhere is called "sparkling wine".  Moët et Chandon and Dom Perignon are well known for the high-quality champagnes they produce. The chalet is located on Avenue de Champagne, the most expensive street in the world with millions of bottles of bubbly beneath the surface. The chalet tour guide brought us down to the 23 kilometers worth of cellars housing thousands of bottles of champagne, and she taught us how champagne was made in Moët et Chandon. The cellars were very cold and humid; the humidity helps maintain the temperature. A fun fact is that Napoleon visited these cellars to drink champagne, and in return, he left a very large barrel of wine that is shown in the cellar. 

  Champagne is made with three different types of grapes: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay. Moët et Chandon use grapes from different regions in France, and also incorporate local grapes to make unique flavors. Their harvest begins around September, but changes with the temperature of that year. The grapes are picked by hand, and this allows the best grapes to be used, and prevents them from being damaged. The grapes are then pressed very gently so the pigmentation from the grape skins aren't incorporated in the juices. The juices are then placed in steel vats where the first round of alcoholic fermentation is completed. The vats are opened allowing carbon dioxide to escape, resulting in a still wine. 

  At their chalet, there is a small group of ten people who take almost 800 different still wines and blend them to make sure the quality and taste of Moët et Chandon remains the same. There is a difference in making an Imperial and a Vintage champagne. Imperial champagnes include reserve still wines, allowing the taste to remain the same, like their most common champagne, Brut Imperial. To make a vintage, they only use the harvest from that specific year, so it's a very unique taste. Grand vintages are not made every year, and only the cellar master decides to make a blend for the year.

  Champagne undergoes a second fermentation with a solution of yeast and sugar, and brought down to the cellar. The bottles are closed so the carbon dioxide cannot escape, and this is the creation of the bubbles. Once all of the sugar has been eaten up by the yeast, they yeast die and produce sediment in the bottle. They are matured for 2-3 years for the Imperials, and 7 years for the Vintages. (I was able to purchase two Vintages from 2008!) The remuage, or riddling phase is when the bottles are turned ever so slightly (1/4th of a turn) every day. It is in a vertical position that allows the sediments to settle at the neck of the bottle. There are professional riddlers that turn the Vintages every day; but many of their bottle are turned on a palate that fits 500 bottles of champagne, allowing them to be turned 24/7. The neck of the bottle is then frozen, and the sediments are removed. A solution of sugar and reserved wine is added. The quantity of sugar is what determines what type of champagne it is, ranging from Brut (close to no sugar) to Doux (almost 50 grams of residual sugar). I don't think I've ever turned down a glass of Extra Sec champagne. I enjoy the slight sweetness of champagne that doesn't give you a sugar headache the next day! It is then quickly re-corked, and brought back down to the cellar for 3-6 months depending on the type. After that, the champagne bottle is washed, labeled, and distributed throughout the world!

  I really enjoyed my glass of champagne after the tour. Moët et Chandon's champagnes, including Dom Perignon, have made the list of the 10 most expensive champagnes on the planet. Of course, this is determined on which bottle you're trying to purchase! I want to send a special thank you to my lovely sister-in-law for purchasing us two bottles of Moët et Chandon for our wedding celebration in Denmark (thanks Haize!)