Épernay is the sort of town that makes a bubble feel like an institution. It sits on the Marne river, in the heart of Champagne, and its main street, the Avenue de Champagne, is lined with the grand houses of famous producers: Moët and Chandon, Perrier-Jouët, Pol Roger, Mercier and others, in mansions of stone, brick and wrought iron, set behind gardens and gates. The avenue is sometimes called the most expensive street in the world, a joke based on the value of the bottles stored beneath it.
That is the real secret of Épernay: the cellars. Under the town, chalk galleries stretch for tens of kilometres, cool and damp, where millions of bottles lie on their sides, slowly developing the fine bubbles that give the wine its character. Several houses offer tours, which include a descent into the dark, a lecture on the méthode champenoise and, naturally, a glass at the end. It is best to book ahead in summer, and remember that tasting and riding do not mix.
The hills around, planted with chardonnay and pinot noir and pinot meunier, form the landscape that was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2015 for its vineyards, houses and cellars. A few kilometres to the north, in the village of Hautvillers, the monk Dom Pérignon is traditionally credited with refining the techniques of champagne production in the late seventeenth century, though the myth that he invented the wine is just that. His grave lies in the abbey church.
The riding here is a pleasure. The scenic route through the vineyards winds along the slopes of the Montagne de Reims and the Côte des Blancs, with good roads, gentle gradients, and long views over rows of vines. The best time is autumn, when the harvest is under way and the vineyards turn red and gold, but spring, with its fresh green growth, is just as good. During the harvest, expect tractors and workers on the roads.
Épernay is a town of twenty-seven thousand, with fuel stations, restaurants and parking, and the centre is compact enough to explore on foot. The suburb of Magenta is named after the battle of 1859, a small piece of Franco-Italian history in a very French town.