Aÿ Champagne Experience: Full Wine Tour Review

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Ratings matter. One of the main reasons we chose Aÿ Champagne Experience for a wine tour is because of their incredible client reviews.

I’ve listed all the big review sites below if you want to check out the testimonials.   

Isabelle, the founder of Aÿ-Champagne Experience, was our guide for a truly exceptional afternoon of Champagne tasting. Isabelle grew up in the town of Aÿ and obtained her Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) Level 2 Wine Certification, so you know you are in expert hands!

My husband and I have done the big group wine tours in Napa Valley. Been there, done that. Never again.

We love small group tours. It allows you to visit the smaller winemakers and engage in a more intimate, relaxed way.

Isabelle offers both small group and private tours.

Aÿ Champagne Experience offers several different half day and full day tour options. 

The main difference between the full and half day option is the full day tour includes lunch plus a few more tastings. The full day tour is offered as a private or a small group tour. 

We chose the afternoon half day Connoisseurs Experience, which included a visit to two smaller independent Champagne producers. We had a total of 9 wine tastings and 3 local spirits.  The half day Connoisseurs Experience is only offered as a private tour in the morning or afternoon.

We stayed at the adorable 5-bedroom boutique hotel, Le 25Bis by Leclerc Briant, in Epernay. Leclerc Briant is known for their exceptional Champagne.

The reason we chose the half day afternoon tour with Aÿ Champagne Experience was because we started our day at 10:30 am with a wonderful tour and tasting at Leclerc Briant (which I also highly recommend!).

After our Champagne tasting, we grabbed a quick sandwich and salad at DEJOIE’s Lunch Time. Isabelle picked us up shortly after for our official wine tour in her red electric E-Mehari.

Our Champagne tour started with a visit to Saint-Sindulphe Church in the town of Hautvillers.

This church is the burial site of the famous “spiritual father of Champagne,” Dom Pierre Pérignon.

Champagne wine owes its fine reputation to this famous monk’s expert techniques in winemaking. A fitting way to start the tour!

We were blessed with gorgeous weather on our wine tour. Isabelle stopped off at a beautiful panoramic viewpoint overlooking the vineyards.

Our first stop was at Champagne Joseph Desruets, which has been around since 1888!

Six family generations have continued their traditional winemaking process. They still press their grapes with the same old wooden oak press! That is a lot of history.

We enjoyed a tasting of three Premier Cru Champagnes: Cuvée Soleil de Mai, Cuvée Coeur de Pinots (our favorite), and Cuvée Sybarite.

On our way to our second stop, Isabelle introduced us to Ratafia Champenois from Goyard Distillers, known as the “other drink” made in Champagne.

It’s made from the juice of the third or fourth press and then fortified with brandy. It’s typically enjoyed as an apéritif or after-dinner drink. Very fun to try!

We also tried two additional spirits: Marc de Champagne (made from pressing the skin and seeds and then aged in barrels) and Fine de la Marne (aged specifically in barrels along the Marne River).

Our second Champagne House was Jean Milan.

Five generations of the Milan family have been operating this winery since 1864. The friendly staff walked us through a lovely tasting of six of their Champagnes. One we particularly enjoyed was the Cuvée Symphorine.

After our second Champagne tasting, Isabelle drove us back to our hotel around 5 pm. Fantastic tour! Bubbles = happiness. 

When I think of France, I think of exceptional wine. We love to do “winecations,” and France was certainly one of our favorites. Make sure you book a Champagne tour, where you can delve into the intricacies of winemaking and savor exquisite wines crafted by boutique producers. I’ll save you the research. Book a tour with Aÿ Champagne Experience, and Isabelle will make sure you have a fantastic experience.  

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Questions about our tour with Aÿ Champagne Experience? 

Let me know in the comments below!