Reims Cathedral and Madame Pommery

The chateau in Etoges was so lovely we were sorry to pack up and leave and also feeling a bit sad that we were moving on to our last stop of our trip. The weather wasn't doing us any favours either. We were however looking forward to visiting Reims on the way. The crit air requirements were an issue again so we took a tram into Reims from the park and ride. As we got close to the centre of the city the rain grew heavier and bucketed down making the city look a bit dreary. We alighted by the Palais de Justice and squinted through the rain at it before making our way to the famous Cathedral where French Kings were traditionally crowned. We rushed staight inside to take shelter from the pouring rain without paying much attention to the exterior. Although we were thinking the visit to the cathedral was a bit if a 'tick the box' exercise as we had seen so many cathedrals already, we were both stunned by its soaring height, length and beauty.

Many of the original stained glass windows were blown out in the war and had been replaced by more modern works as in the picture above. It was such a shame the rain was pelting down and it was freezing cold and deterred us from spending a lot of time looking at the plethora of intricate and different statues adorning the exterior (although it doesn't look that wet in the photos).

We were amused by how the water was channeled out the mouths of the gargoyles and took turns standing under one with the umbrella just for fun.

We both were a little damp from that experience and feeling the cold so, being less choosy than usual, we ducked into the first cafe we saw. It turned out to be a great choice (although we were so wet and cold I am sure anywhere warm would have made a good impression) and after a restorative meal and glass of wine we felt ready to exert ourselves and walk the 2.5 km to Madame Pommery's, the rain now reduced to a drizzle.

I would absolutely recommend visiting Madame Pommery and doing a guided tour with tasting. We started by learning a bit about the history, including how people sheltered in the wine caves during the war and set up to contine their work underground in the caves, having champagne for lunch. So much of the winery was destroyed by bombing and this beautifully carved barrel was one of the only things that survived above ground.

Each year an art exhibition is curated and works of art are displayed in the caves for visitors to see, which is a point of difference from other wine houses and made the tour more interesting than just having the usual history of the wine house and explanation of the champagne making process (which we already know). We saw several works of art from past years in the museum before descending into the caves to see the current exhibition and learn more about the wine.

After passing through two huge wooden doors we descended a long flight of stairs under a rainbow of lights - very dramatic - and then were led through tunnels and caves while the wine making process was explained, stopping to look at the art as well. It is a working space so from time to time we spotted people going about their daily tasks.

Of course, what goes down must come up, so we had to climb the 116 steps back up through the rainbow before being rewarded with a glass of rose champagne and a glass of brut champagne, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

And so to our last accommodation, and what a treat to stay in another beautiful chateau which was very different incharacter from the last one with some very old ruins of the original chateau in the grounds. We arrived too late to do much exploring other than a quick walk around the outside of the original moat, stopping to try out the stocks and wrestle with the sword in the stone - neither of us are destined for royal greatness, the sword remains in the stone (which was really wood).