Sabrage Tours
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Champagne:
What is Sabrage
Sabrage is a technique for opening a Champagne bottle with a saber, used for ceremonial occasions by sliding (rather than chopping) along the body of the bottle toward the neck. The force of the blade hitting the lip breaks the glass to separate the collar from the neck and lip of the bottle - just under the wire cage. The cork and collar remain together after separation. Due to the high pressure inside the bottle the cork shoots out at a high velocity but leaves the champagne in the bottle. This technique became popular after the French Revolution as the saber was the weapon of choice of Napoleon's Hussars who would open the Champagne with their sabers to celebrate victories.
Champagne Notes
Tasting in the Marne
Ever wondered where the pink color of Rose comes from? Join us on a Champagne Varietal Tour and you will find out the answer to this as well as the chance to compare regional difference, grapes, blends and fermentation times.
Tasting in the Aube
Our tour to the Aube is unique. We'll take you to the Cote des Bar know for its Pinot Noir and Troyes a medieval town know as the home of the Monks of Clairvaux and the Knights Templar.
Learn The Art of Sabrage in Champagne
Learn about and participate in sabrage, a traditional ceremony in which you open a Champagne bottle with an authentic saber.
Sabrage is a ceremonial technique for opening a bottle of Champagne with a saber. This technique became popular in France when Napoleon's Hussars celebrates their victoires as they conquered Europe. Today the Champagne sword (sabred à champagne) is a blunt instrument specially made for sabrage with blades as short as 12 inches.
By the end of your day you will have visited small, medium, and large producers, tasted Grand and Premier Cru Champagnes, had lunch at in a Champagne House ( hard to organize for groups as small as 2 people) and improved your swordsmanship.
Tours limited to one per week
Itinerary
9:30am : Pick up in Reims
1st Visit: Visit a vineyard in the "Montagne of Reims" and make stops in the villages of Verzany where you will stop to see the lighthouse and the windmill along with a magnificent view of the Champagne terroir and Mailly, both of which hold - Grand Cru status. You will begin the day with a Grand Cru Tasting.
2nd Visit: Around 11 am we will do a cellar visit in a magnificent stately home and cellar where we will see the presses, tanks, vines and receive an explanation of the Champagne making process. You will then have a demonstration of Sabrage.
Its time to do it yourself. You will then be awarded a swordsman's diploma and your beautifully encased cork as well as a well earned champagne toast.
Lunch: A private catered lunch will be served usually in the cellars amongst the wooden barrels or in the Chateau.
3rd Visit : Cellar visit at Moet et Chandon
4th Visit : If time a tasting at a small family estate near Hautvillers to round off the day.
4:30pm : Return to Reims
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