Wine tasting near Paris

I have a good friend visiting Paris soon and she wants to take an overnight trip to visit some wine country and do some wine tasting. Can anyone recommend a region, wineries, or place to stay?

Thanks!

I have a good friend visiting Paris soon and she wants to take an overnight trip to visit some wine country and do some wine tasting. Can anyone recommend a region, wineries, or place to stay?

Thanks!

Champagne is easiest. Take the train to Reims, get off train, tour cathedral, visit the grand marques.

Loire is easy too, especially if you have car. Drive south. Sancerre/Pouilly Fume for SB, Tours for Vouvray and Touraine, and you can make it easily to Chinon (small town, great castle ruins, vineyard right behind the castle you can tour/taste).

[James Roscoe]

When we were in Paris we took the train to Rheims. It was relatively inexpensive. We got on the bus all day for 3 Euro and hit a bunch of champagne houses. Make arrangements in advance if you can. They treated us like visiting royalty!

The cathedral is not to be missed, especially the Chagal window! WOW!!!!

Champagne is great but so is the Loire valley. Take the TGV to Saint-Pierre des Corps (near Tours), hire a car at the station and do the Vouvray/Montlouis and Chinon/Bourgueil estates returning the car at SPdC. Or alternatively continue along the valley though Saumur-Champigny and Coteaux du Layon and Savennières returning the car at Angers station.

Lots of NWR sights as well; scores of historic châteaux, abbeys, etc and beautiful scenery in the valley.

The estates here are less geared up for tourists than the big Champagne houses but personally I find dealing directly with the vigneron much more rewarding. Appointments are required, except at the François Chidaine shop in Montlouis. French is a big asset.

If you want any addresses, let me know.

PS The journey time from Paris to SPdC is 1 hour and from Angers to Paris 1 h 30 mins.