Wine tasting in Northern France
—In collaboration with My Ferry Link
If you’re a wine connoisseur and visiting France, then you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to sample some of the great wine created in Northern France. We say ‘some’ because, frankly, unless you have an amazing amount of time and money, you’re probably not going to get around to tasting even most of the wine in this part of France, let alone all of it. Still, if you book a ferry to France between Dover and Calais, you should find plenty of time to drive through pretty vineyards, sip wines, chat with winemakers and swiftly travel from one “wine hub” to another – especially thanks to this guide.
Getting started
Embarking on wine tasting in Northern France has probably never been easier. The region has a great number and variety of wine producing areas, plus tourist offices, local wine boards, wine schools, vineyards, producers and knowledgeable guides that can help you to make the most of your time spent wine tasting in this region. There are even many signs and maps designating wine roads through vineyards; frankly, you’ll feel like you’re in wine heaven.
Consider your travel options
However, before embarking on your trip to Northern France, you should consider exactly how you are going to get the most out of the region. There are so many options here that it pays to make your decision long beforehand to ensure that you won’t feel indecisive later. These options include joining group tours, participating in cookery classes, taking scheduled day trips and taking – perhaps preferably English language – short courses at wine schools. Alternatively, you could just travel on your own, provided that you know enough of the French language, like to drive and aren’t on a tight schedule. Another alternative is simply opting for a combination of many of the above options.
Areas to especially consider
We would particularly recommend that you visit the city of Reims; this lies about 80 miles east-northeast of Paris and is awash with producers of champagne, without doubt France’s most famous wine. There are also champagne producers in and around nearby Epernay. We would also recommend that you visit the region of Burgundy, which is home to the famous Côte d’Or area, itself home to some of the world’s best known wines. While in the region, you could spend a particularly large amount of time in Beaune, which has been dubbed the region’s wine capital.
