Explore one of France’s storied wine regions with a professional whose job it is to know the Champagne region inside and out: Victoria James, once the youngest sommelier in the world. Now the director of beverage at Gracious Hospitality Management, the restaurant group behind Michelin-starred COTE, cocktail bar UNDERCOTE, and COTE Wine Club, James’s beverage programs have received a James Beard nomination for Outstanding Wine Program two years in a row. She has curated an itinerary of the only place in the world where Champagne is produced, filled with acclaimed, generations-old vintners big and small. Then you’ll visit Paris’s Left Bank, where Victoria will introduce you to some of its jewel-like wine bars, open-air markets, chocolatiers, and boulangeries.
We start our trip with time in Champagne, visiting the world-renowned House of Krug in Reims as well as some of the smaller family-owned wineries. And since there is more to Champagne than its effervescent bubbly, you’ll dine at a mix of acclaimed restaurants, including Les Avizés in Champagne. You’ll also experience the café in Montmartre where van Gogh would go to paint, as well as a handful of bistros serving the best food of the region. Between culinary adventures, explore Gothic churches, UNESCO sites, and fossil-filled caves.
Of course, no trip to France would be complete without a visit to Paris, where you will drink wines with a view to French gastronomy. You’ll learn about French cheeses and chocolates, check out the produce at the open-air markets, and be introduced to some excellent wines by some of Paris’s most interesting sommeliers.
With an itinerary that offers meaningful encounters with vintners across Champagne and makers in Paris, this is a trip to be savored.
A Parisian wine bar.Photograph by Ditte Isager
Highlights
- Experience Champagne and Paris with Victoria James, a world-renowned sommelier, as your guide.
- Indulge in a range of tastings across the Champagne region, visiting the world-renowned House of Krug in Reims as well as small family-owned wineries producing excellent grower champagnes.
- Wine and dine at a variety of acclaimed establishments, including the fine dining restaurant Les Avizés in Champagne, popular local bistros, and a café in Montmartre where van Gogh went to paint.
- Tour the gardens and greenhouses at Le Garde Champêtre, a farm restaurant built by famous restaurateur Juan Sanchez out of a passion for sustainable, local cuisine, then sit down to a farm-to-table meal.
- Visit artisanal producers from boulangeries to chocolatiers on a morning tour of the open-air markets and food purveyors of Paris’s Left Bank.
- Attune your palate to the nuanced flavors of French cheeses—and learn about the role of cheese in French culture and gastronomy—during an expert-led tasting experience in Paris.
Pricing and Details
Read on for the full getaway itinerary. In the meantime, some key information:
- Dates: November 5–11, 2023
- Deposit: $500 per traveler (required upon booking to secure a spot)
- Price: $7,990 (double occupancy); $8,925 (single occupancy). Please be aware that airfare to and from the starting and ending point of the program is not included in the tour price. This gives travelers maximum flexibility in using frequent flier upgrades and selecting desired airports with no constraints. Agents are available to assist with reservations upon request.
- Hotels: Reims’s Hôtel de la Paix (3 nights); and Paris’s Hôtel Royal Saint Honoré (3 nights)
- To book your trip: Visit here or call 1-877-298-9677
- Questions?: [email protected] or 1-877-298-9677
- Terms and conditions
