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Reims
Champagne capital of the world, Reims possesses one of the most impressive Gothic cathedrals in France - formerly the coronation church of dynasties of French monarchs going back to Clovis, first king of the Franks - whose 1500th anniversary celebrations in 1996 provoked fierce controversy between Catholics and secularists.
The old centre of Reims stretches from the cathedral and its adjacent episcopal palace north to place de la République's triumphal Roman arch, the Porte de Mars, punctuated by the grand squares of place Royale, place du Forum and place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville. Over to the south, about fifteen minutes' walk from the cathedral, is the other historical focus of the town, the Abbaye de St-Remi , and nearby the Jesuits' College . To the east of here are most of the champagne maisons and, further east still, a museum of cars.
The cathedral is less than ten minutes' walk from the gare SNCF and gare routière . The tourist office (Easter to mid-Oct Mon-Sat 9am-7pm, Sun 10am-6pm; mid-Oct to Easter Mon-Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 10am-5pm;) is conveniently located next door to the cathedral in a picturesque ruin. Internet access is available at Clique et Croque , 27 rue de Vesle (daily 9am-midnight), a cyber café serving snacks throughout the day.
For the serious business of Reims, head to place des Droits-de-l'Homme and place St-Niçaise, near the Abbaye St-Remi. These are both within striking distance of the majority of the Reims maisons , most of which charge an entrance fee for their tours but include a dégustation and have English guides. Only three can be visited without an appointment: the houses of Mumm, Taittinger and Piper-Heidsieck.
The best of the regular guided tours is Mumm at 34 rue du Champ-de-Mars (March-Oct daily 9-11am & 2-5pm; Nov-Feb Mon-Fri same hours, Sat & Sun afternoons only; tour takes 45min; 25F/?3.81). Established in 1827, Mumm is familiar for its red-slashed Cordon Rouge label - its un-French-sounding name is the legacy of its founders, affluent German wine-makers from the Rhine Valley. The tour is fairly informal - you can wander freely about its cellar museum and throw questions at the approachable guides - though you pick up the basics from a pre-tour video. There's not a lot of walking despite 25km of cellars and a reported 35 million bottles of wine; some of the vintage bottles date from 1911. It all ends with a generous glass of either Cordon Rouge, the populist choice; the sweeter Cordon Vert; or their Extra Dry. At Taittinger , 9 place St-Niçaise (Mon-Fri 9.30am-noon & 2-4.30pm, Sat & Sun 9-11am & 2-5pm; Dec-Feb Mon-Fri only; tour takes 1hr;), there are still more ancient caves , with doodles and carvings added by more recent workers, and statues of St Vincent and St Jean, patron saints respectively of vignerons and cellar hands.
Although founded in 1785, Piper-Heidsieck , at 51 bd Henry-Vasnier (March-Nov daily 9-11.45am & 2-5.15pm; Dec-Feb closed Tues & Wed;), is better known in the New World than the Old, having been the champagne of the American movie industry since first appearing - with Laurel and Hardy - in the 1934 classic Sons of the Desert . The champagne of the Oscars gives a fair whack of sponsorship for film prizes and festivals too, and really the only folk who'll get anything out of the tour - which ends up at a gallery of celebrity snaps - are confirmed film buffs and lovers of tackiness: the antique caves are toured by automatic five-seater car shuttle resembling a ghost train. Out of the darkness and timed to a cliché-ridden narration loom giant fibreglass grapes and vast hands armed with secateurs, or life-size badly proportioned lumpy figures positioned as cellar masters. You emerge to a glittering photo-studded foyer and a snooty atmosphere and a much-needed drink.
Top of the list of appointment-only houses is the Maison Veuve Clicquot-Ponsardin , 1 place des Droits-de-l'Homme (tel 03.26.89.54.41; free). In the early days of capitalism, the widowed Mme Clicquot not only took over her husband's business, but later bequeathed it to her business manager rather than to her children - both radical breaks with tradition. In keeping with this past, the maison is one of the least pompous and its video the best. The caves , with their horror-movie fungi, are old Gallo-Roman quarries. The House of Pommery , 5 place du Général-Gouraud, also has excavated Roman quarries for its cellars; it claims - in a case of good champagne oneupmanship - to have been the first to do so. Other appointment-only maisons are Ruinart , 4 rue des Crayères, Charles Heidsieck , 4 bd Henry-Vasnier, and Lanson , 12 bd Lundy.
Finally, to get an overview of the various champagnes available (plus wines from all over France), it's worth visiting La Vino Cave , 43 place Drouet-d'Erlon (Mon 2.30-7.30pm, Tues-Sat 9.30am-1pm & 2.30-7.30pm), where you can also buy all the paraphernalia of the bubbly business, from champagne flutes to snazzy servers.
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