French Art, Heritage and Culture from Paris to Provence : Circa Tours

Wines and Cuisine of France
The Wine Roads of Alsace, Burgundy & Champagne

This journey follows three of the oldest and most famous wine roads in France: Alsace, Burgundy, and Champagne, and it offers tastings of some of the best wines in the world. Along the way, you will also discover picturesque small towns and villages around the French countryside and get a taste of the local cuisine.

Map of Wines and Cuisine of France custom tour: Alsace, Burgundy, Champagne

Alsace, located in eastern France and bordering Germany, primarily produces white wines. It is the only region in France that makes mostly varietals (wines named after the grape variety they come from): Sylvaner, Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer are the best known. The Rieslings, in particular, are some of the most noted white wines in the world.

The wines of Alsace are superb and the regional cuisine is heavenly, but the sightseeing is unlike anything you have ever seen: from small villages of half-timbered houses copiously decorated with a rainbow of flowers to the Haut Koenigsbourg, a majestic medieval castle perched on a high rocky promontory overlooking the whole Rhine River valley. Not to be missed, of course, is Strasbourg, the capital of Alsace and the seat of the European Parliament. Tour the historical center, the Gothic cathedral built of pink stone and the old quarter ("La Petite France") with more typical timber-framed houses.

Burgundy. Wine making in Burgundy is a tradition going back a thousand years. Unlike Bordeaux, where classifications are awarded to individual chateaus (Margaux, Yquem and Lafite Rothschild, among the most famous), Burgundy classifications are more geographically centered: Côte de Nuits, Côte de Beaune, Côte d'Or, Côte Chalonnaise, Beaujolais and Chablis.

As in other regions of France, Burgundy wines have their own classifications: grand crus, premier crus, village and generic Bourgogne. Red Burgundy wines are usually made from Pinot Noir grapes, and white Burgundies from Chardonnay. (Beaujolais primarily uses Gamay grapes.) Two "must-sees" in this region: the "Route des Grands Crus" and the Flemish-Gothic Hospices de Beaune, with its distinctive brightly-colored tile roof, where the famous, lavish Burgundy charity wine auction is held every November.

Champagne. Taittinger, Mercier, Moët et Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Pol Roger are but a few of the world-famous brands of champagne from the region around Reims and Epernay. Those and many smaller wine houses are all within easy access on the "Route du Champagne." Another high point is Notre Dame Cathedral, a World Heritage Site and a jewel of Gothic architecture where the kings of France were once crowned. On the inside behind the altar, do not miss the set of colorful stained-glass windows designed by artist Mark Chagall - an unusual but wonderfully creative way to match Gothic architecture with modern art!

In Paris, if your timing is right, you may even catch the wine festival (Fête des Vendanges) in early October in Montmartre. There, you will find a small vineyard, lost in the middle of Paris, with a total annual production of about 700 bottles. Naturally, the festival is the occasion for pageantry, music, eating, drinking and all sorts of related merriment.

Please tell us where and when you want to go and we will create a custom tour that fits your specific interests, schedule and budget.

Your tailor-made package will include ground transportation, guided tours and hotel rooms.

The price of your program will depend on your needs (scheduled group tours, private guides...) and the number of participants in your group, the length of the trip, the category of hotels, the number of places visited, the time of year, etc.

We will do all the bookings and pay each individual provider on your behalf. In other words, you go and have fun and we'll take care of the details for you.

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Wines and Cuisine of France