Thursday, April 30, 2015

Oenophile's Guide For France Wine Tours

By Alta Alexander


There's not much debate that oenophiles find French wines to be the world's best. But the pleasure of sipping these wines is no match for the thrilling experience of discovering them on France wine tours. There is simply no match for the French in terms of the dazzling array of producing regions, vineyards, wineries, cellars and the extraordinary talent they have for coming up with great wines.

Visitors on these trips have a treasure trove of wines to discover. Drinking French champagne at home and tramping around the vineyards and tasting in the cellars of Champagne where it is made are two entirely different things. Paris day trips often end up as extensive culinary explorations of the Loire Valley or tastings in the cellars of Champagne-Ardenne.

Nothing is more French or closer to the heart of oenophiles than a walk down the Avenue de Champagne. It's just as easy to drive over or bike to the producers in the Alsace region. Free tastings for everyone are the norm here, so the tours just hop around and give people a taste of all the good things the region is famous for.

Serious wine lovers will find the nearest haven from Paris is the Loire Valley. It's a magical escape back in time, filled with castles and vineyards dotting the verdant green landscape. The tour guide on these expeditions will be somebody who is not just an oenophile, but is also intimately familiar with the Loire Valley vineyards and their wines.

Visitors coming in from Paris can expect to be collected at the railway station and taken around for an amazing day trip of the vineyards and wineries in the area. The guide will explain everything in English, and guests can expect to enjoy the whole day of exploration and tastings without any worry. Those who prefer a more relaxed schedule on their own can also arrange for a custom one or two-day tour.

The die-hard winetripper, so to speak, has many more options a long way from Paris. For example, Bordeaux is a three-hour train trip from Paris. Just decide to stay back for a couple of days or more and explore the region at leisure. Those willing to devote the time it takes can expect a highly memorable culinary weekend or week discovering the Bordeaux wine regions like Medoc and Saint Emilion.

Bordeaux also offers the chance to go off the beaten track in terms of tour options. It's possible to combine visits to all the vineyards with stops at Michelin-starred restaurants and cheese shopping sprees. Visitors may just as well take a harvest tour as part of a luxury chauffeur-driven guided trip where they learn about the incredible hard work that goes into creating one good bottle of wine.

These are just some of the possibilities. There are similar experiences and vineyards and wines waiting to be discovered in Burgundy, Provence, the Rhone Valley, Corsica and many more regions. Just decide whether the French wine tour should be a part of the overall tourist expedition or a complete trip in and by itself. It's possible to arrange for custom trips based on the choice of region, budget and time available.




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