We have friends who would love to find a driver who would take them through the wine counter try - it could be the Rhone, Burgundy, Provence or Bordeaux. Does anyone. have any experience with this?
A million thanks!!
Posted by
Chicagoland
2423 posts
If they have any interest in the wines of Alsace, they should contact L'Alsaciette in Colmar. While they are known for their wonderful small group day tours, Arnaud and Agnes are very accommodating and could arrange a private tour.
Posted by
OP
370 posts
Thank you so much but I think that their idea is to have someone pick them up ate CDG and whirl them off to the vineyards. But - I will keep this in mind for me!
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
3370 posts
crooney55,
Have your friends taken a look at a map of France? It is about as large as California. To go from CDG to Beaune by car, for instance, is 215 miles, at least a 3 1/2 hours drive (not including stops for gas, food, or bathrooms). Bordeaux is 378 miles away, a 7-8 hour drive. Provence is a region covering over 12,000 square miles. There are many, many places in the region for wine tasting. The Rhone river valley in France is 338 miles long and goes from Lyon to the Mediterranean. Once again, wineries abound.
Wineries and vineyards in France rarely have a drive-up tasting option. Those that do have tastings usually require a reservation. Also, most of them have limited days and hours devoted to tastings. (It is not like California, where one could fly into San Francisco and drive in about 2 hours to visit a winery for a tasting in Napa or Sonoma or Mendocino county.
Probably your friends' best bet would be to have a driver take them to the Reims/Epernay area for some champagne tasting. There are some tours that go to a few Epernay vineyards, and there are champagne caves and tastings in the city of Reims. Reservations for either are generally required. If they should choose this, it would be worthwhile to stay overnight in Reims, as the cathedral there is beautiful, and is where nearly every king of France was crowned. A bonus is that Reims is at least on the same side of Paris as CDG.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
3370 posts
P.S. Due to time and distances, what they hope for is a very costly option and would entail overnights. I imagine they would need to cover lodging for their driver as well as (possibly) his meals.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
3370 posts
Another P.S. To be honest, just about all of France is wine country.
Posted by
OP
370 posts
Judy, you are, of course, right on all counts. I'm afraid that theirs is a rather romantic dream at the moment - they do need to focus and define more clearly what they would like. Several years ago, they did a wine tour of South Africa and continue to rave about it and I think that they want to replicate that experience. thank you so much.