The Path of a Champagne Widow ... - Robert Buranello

​Upon leaving Germany for France, we could not miss out on a day-trip to Champagne.  Our one stop was the House of Pommery in Reims, France, the site of many of the ancient Roman chalk caves that house the effervescent elixir we know as Champagne today that, many centuries ago, was part of the coronation festivities of French kings. ​

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Le Domaine Pommery is one of the most noted houses, producing a truly excellent Champagne that is aged and stored in 18kms of chalk caves beneath the city.  La veuve Louise Pommery is also the first Champagne maker to develop a brut Champagne with no added sugar for her most loyal English customers and, thus, changed the face of Champagne culture forever.  She is also reputed to be the first to utilize the naturally temperature-controlled chalk-pits, or crayères, to store Champagne.  This is an eminent house whose blissful bubbly is aged and stored in 18kms of chalk caves beneath the city.  La veuve Louise Pommery is also the first Champagne maker to develop a brut Champagne with no added sugar for her most loyal English customers and, thus, changed the face of Champagne culture forever.  She is also reputed to be the first to utilize the naturally temperature-controlled chalk-pits, or crayères, to store Champagne.   It was great fun to follow the path of the Champagne widow, Louise Pommery, and be rewarded by great drinking when we resurfaced!