Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and Argentina. It is now part of LVMH,
Louis Vuitton—Moët Hennessy, the largest
luxury goods company in the world, a
corporation with an annual turnover that
eclipses the GDP of several good-size
countries. Its wine and spirits list alone
includes names such as Krug, Hennessy,
Glenmorangie, Cloudy Bay, and Cheval
des Andes. That is quite a drinks cabinet—
one any drinker would like to get the keys
to, whether blind or not.
Moët et Chandon,
20 ave. de Cham-
pagne, Epernay (
&
33/3/26 51 20 20;
www.
moet.com).
(
Reims (29km/18 miles).
L
$$$
Hotel Castel Jeanson,
24 rue
Jeanson, Ay (
&
33/3/26 54 21 75;
www.
casteljeanson.fr). $$
Le Clos Raymi,
3 rue
Joseph de Venoge, Epernay (
&
33/3/26
51 00 58;
www.closraymi-hotel.com).
Benoit Gouez, Moët & Chandon's
chef de cave.
France
315
Domaine Weinbach
How to Pronounce “Gewürztraminer”
Alsace, France
Alsace may be France's smallest wine
region, but it is also the most fought over.
France and Germany have torn each other's
eyes out in an often vicious tug of war for
this pastoral paradise in the far northeast-
ern corner of France. The European Union
has put a stop to such bickering, but Ger-
man influence is still strong here—note the
tall, flute-shaped bottles used in Alsatian
wineries, similar to those employed along
the Rhine.
The grapes are German too, predomi-
nantly whites such as Riesling and the
tongue-twister Gewürztraminer.
A hundred wineries dot the landscape,
from the towers and footbridges of Stras-
bourg to the main wine town Colmar.
Domaine Weinbach is one of the most
prominent, situated in the quaint village of
Kaysersberg, 5km (3 miles) north of Col-
mar. The town is a marvelous mix of cob-
blestones and rickety wood-frame houses
that are the region's signature buildings.
Tall, spindly roofs shaped like witches'
hats sit atop flower-decked balconies that
hang over arched entranceways. As you
stroll out to the winery, you'll notice that
every vineyard is fringed with a line of
roses. They're not there just for beauty's
sake—the roses also serve to warn the
winemakers early if any diseases are about
to strike the vine.
Domaine Weinbach begins as a long wall
enclosing the winery grounds bearing the
name Domaine Faller—the family of women
who run the operation. Colette and her two
