Today the road trips continued, starting out with a trip to the Rheims cathedral. This cathedral is probably the most politically significant cathedral for the French people. It started back in the 5th century, when the Frank king Clovis was baptized in a predecessor church. Every since then, French kings have wanted to put them in the same line as Clovis by having their coronations done in the Cathedral. The most signficant coronation was that of Charles VII, who was somewhat relcutantly led to the cathedral by a more confident Joan of Arc.
Unfortunately, the cathedral does not have much of its ancient stained glass in it, as it was hit hard during World War I (the battle of Verdun was fought not far from Rheims). But it did have a set of three stained glass windows under the South rose window that chronicled the making of champagne (as Rheims is in the champagne region of France, more on that later). My favorite panel was one showing them in the vats, mashing the grapes
But the most interesting stained glass window was a recent addition. In the nave, the church got local artist Marc Chagall to design three stained glass windows. Though modern, they somehow fit in amongst the ancient setting.
After Rheims, I took a train over to Epernay, where champagne was invented. The local story is that when Dom Perignon (the Benedictine monk) stumbled across champagne after undergoing the double fermentation process, he went running through the monestary shouting, "Brothers, come quickly, I am drinking stars!" Nice story, but as with all nice stories, you doubt that it is true.
Today, Epernay is home to the Moet et Chandon house, which is probably the biggest and most well-known champagne producer. I was there to go on a tour of their champagne caves and enjoy a little tasting. The reason that French champagne is so prestigious, according to our tour guide, is that the region is uniquely suited to growing and storing the grapes. Not only is the soil and climate perfect, but the chalk rock that is ubiqitous in the area is perfect for keeping the champagne bottles fermenting in a humid, yet cool environment. To prove her point, our tour guide invited us to touch the walls. To my surprise, they were cold and clammy! Our tour guide explained the various steps in making champagne and it was very informative. And, of course, at the end, we got to taste two types of Moet et Chandon champagne. It was pretty good. Not a bad way to end my time in France. Tomorrow, onto London!
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