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Telegraph
12-05-2025
- Telegraph
A luxury river cruise through the vineyards of Champagne, with tickets from £63,000
Who knew big-bottomed barges could be sexy? Belmond, apparently. The LVMH group's seven-strong fleet journeys along some of France's 2,700 miles of canals and inland waterways, seducing guests with its slow travel ethos with disarming ease. Coquelicot, a 39-metre converted Dutch cargo barge is Les Bateaux Belmond's leading lady, and the only one that meanders through effervescent Champagne (others cruise Burgundy, Provence or Camargue). There's a whimsical pleasure associated with canal cruising, typified by the kitschy Roses & Castles paintwork that identifies traditional narrowboats with just enough room for two at the tiller. Belmond's floating villa, however – all sage green accents and Brazilian hardwood decks – is rather a cut above, and I can think of no more luxurious way to carve out a gentle sojourn through the vineyards of France's Pinot Noir countryside. I first glimpsed Coquelicot, my home for two nights, moored on the bank of the Canal latéral à la Marne, a 42-mile (67km) stretch of scenic waterway built to bypass the River Marne's tricky navigation upstream of Épernay. I'd made the mad dash that morning through London's St Pancras International to catch the Eurostar to Paris, before jumping aboard a fast train to Reims, which spat me out onto Champagne's doorstep like a popped cork. Fortunately, that's where the frenetic pace ended, and soon I was strolling along a grassy towpath gulping deep lungfuls of glorious fresh air tinged with the buttery tang of rapeseed. Coquelicot's young crew – clad to a man in Saint James Breton tops and Palladium boots – welcomed me aboard (so far, so superyacht) with a glass of delicately bubbled Ruinart Brut, while the dulcet tones of Edith Piaf wafted from a discreetly placed pair of speakers onto a peachy afternoon breeze. The great slow down had officially begun. Bounding from the galley (with all the Parisian panache of a chef whose restaurant has garnered three Michelin stars) came Dominique Crenn, whose partnership with Les Bateaux Belmond to create signature menus (one lunch, one dinner) that celebrate seasonal local ingredients brings a slice of Atelier Crenn's San Francisco farm-to-table ethos to Champagne. 'I told my team to close their eyes and imagine what we would want to eat on the boat,' she said, holding court on the top deck as we dived into a starter of spring pea tart topped with trout roe, mint and spoonfuls of milk velouté. 'You're going to be drinking a lot of wine and relaxing all day, so you need light, fresh food that brings happiness to the palate,' she added prophetically, as a steady stream of epicurean delights served on Marie Daâge crockery alighted the table. Pretty platters of white and green wild asparagus served with caviar, saffron, and tartare of tomatoes (Chef Crenn's preferred ingredient in May) were swiftly followed by ladles of crab and mussel bouillabaisse, each layer washed down with a delicately paired vintage from the boat's bulging wine cellar (pre-stocked with guest requests) showcasing the finest of France's Grand Crus. Novice oenophiles are also in good hands with Coquelicot's two consummate hosts, Marie-Jeanne and Thomas, whose selections included a citrusy Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru and a punchy Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru from the 2020 vintage. Both were met with enthusiastic approval from the Parisian food writer who joined me on the trip. Her request for a crisp rosé later the next day – as we drifted past banks of cobalt blue irises – saw us quaffing glasses from retired-NBA star Tony Parker's Saint Laurent vineyard, who, along with Seth Rogan and Catherine Zeta-Jones, is – I'm told – a fan of Coquelicot's dreamy offering. Eating and drinking is central to all of Belmond's river cruises (one in Burgundy takes in a whopping 12 Michelin stars), as evidenced by the culinary dishes served up by Coquelicot's equally talented Lithuanian onboard chef, Virgil Tiskus, whose pan-fried bass fillet with celeriac and vanilla puree was a notable highlight. Week-long itineraries for up to six guests also include several off board meals; perhaps lunch at the glass-clad Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa's Michelin-starred Le Royal which holds the largest champagne collection in the region. Or, an immersive gastronomic five-course dinner at the historical headquarters of Coquelicot's partner Maison Ruinart, the oldest champagne house, whose history is brought to life on the plate through projected illustrations by Japanese-born Kanako Kuno. Another appeal of luxury barge cruising is the ease with which we moored up on tree-lined canals, hopping onto Coquelicot's four bikes and setting off on jaunts across the vineyard-strewn countryside, chauffeured by the affable Sarah. She deposited us at the ancient subterranean crayères (chalk pits) of Veuve Clicquot where we learned how to release the cork with an 'angel's kiss'. The next day, we strolled through Ruinart's sculpture garden housing works by environmental artists Mouawad Laurier and British artist David Shrigley (his miniature faces carved into the chalky cellars are a delight) before sampling the Maison's dangerously palatable Blanc Singulier Edition 19; a 100 per cent chardonnay cuvée and surprising silver lining to the evolving climate change the region is facing. There's hot air ballooning for early risers, or Hautvillers Abbey, the final resting place of Dom Pérignon – not to mention the region's litany of wisteria-clad villages for picturesque walks, including the aptly named Bouzy and Dizy. The restless have use of Lipova natural wood gym equipment (some boats have heated panoramic pools), but I preferred to laze onboard as we wove our way past brightly shuttered gîtes, lulled by birdsong and the hypnotic rhythm of the mechanical locks, the last of which delivered us with a surge onto the wide-bodied River Marne. In a region that can barely be disentangled from its namesake product, I was barely able to rouse myself from a dream-like revery. If this is how the upper crust do luxury slow travel, sign me up for the summer. Essentials Les Bateaux Belmond has seven-day sailings to Champagne aboard Coquelicot from €75,000 (£63,800), based on a private charter for up to six guests. This includes meals, beverages, daily breakfast, all excursions (including use of the onboard bicycles), a private guide, and return transfers from within France and Geneva. Departures on August 3, 10 and 17, 2025.
Boston Globe
17-03-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Fear of Trump's tariffs ripples through France's Champagne Region
'A 200% tariff is designed to make sure that no Champagne will be shipped to the United States,' said Calvin Boucher, a manager at Michel Gonet, a 225-year-old Champagne house on the avenue. With 20% to 30% of the 200,000 bottles it makes yearly exported to U.S. wine merchants and restaurants, 'that business would be crushed,' he said, adding that the price of a $125 Champagne would more than triple overnight. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Épernay sits in the heart of a region that produces the world's finest bubbly. The United States is its biggest foreign market, with 27 million bottles shipped there in 2023, valued at around 810 million euros ($885 million). Advertisement Chardonnay, pinot noir and Meunier grapes blanket the rolling hills and deep valleys of Champagne, which covers more than 130 square miles, from the city of Reims to the Aube river. The area is under France's strict Appellation d'Origine system, which ensures that only the sparkling wine made here, using specific methods, can legally be called Champagne. With more than 4,000 independent winemakers and 360 Champagne houses, the region produces about 300 million bottles annually, with 1 billion more resting in cellars. The biggest houses -- including Dom Pérignon, Veuve Clicquot and Moët & Chandon, owned by the luxury conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton -- dominate production, and exports and account for one-third of total sales. But such figures were of little comfort in the wake of Trump's threat. Just off the Avenue de Champagne, Nathalie Doucet, president of Besserat de Bellefon, a specialty Champagne house that exports 10% of its premium production to the United States, said the trade war made her anxious. Advertisement 'We are waiting to see what happens, but it's not good news,' said Doucet, whose Champagne is made with a laborious low-pressure process that gives it a crisp acidity and fine effervescence. Champagne already had a tough year with bad weather that had reduced the harvest. Consumption has declined as young people shifted habits and switched to cocktails and artisanal beer. Champagne sales have thinned since the pandemic, falling 9% last year. At the same time, she said, Europe is grappling with wars in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip. And now the trade war with the United States, one of France's traditional allies, over issues that have nothing to do with Champagne, has made her feel like collateral damage. 'It seems like a deliberate punishment,' said Cyril Depart, owner of the Salvatori wine shop, just off the avenue, which offers a wide variety of artisanal Champagnes. His wife was an export manager for one of the big Champagne houses and had already been crunching numbers on the potential impact. Leah Razzouki, an Épernay resident whose family has worked in the Champagne business for generations, said she was infuriated. 'Many of our friends are small producers and they would be hit very hard,' she said. The damage of a trade war would spread far beyond Champagne's regal houses, hitting U.S. American importers and distributors and putting numerous small businesses at risk. Michael Reiss, president of Vineyard Road, a small distributor in Framingham, Massachusetts, that imports Champagne and wines from Europe and distributes them in New England, said small businesses like his, including restaurants and retail shops, would be 'very hurt.' The unpredictable trade environment could force businesses to cancel planned investments, he added. Advertisement Adding to the pain, tariffs applied at the beginning of the supply chain can multiply, as each business handling the product marks it up accordingly, Reiss said. 'So even a 25% tariff can easily lead to a 40% to 60% increase in prices,' he said. A 200% tariff 'would eliminate the possibility of people buying things that bring them joy in their lives,' he added. Even inside the Champagne Museum bordering the avenue in Épernay, the chatter strayed to Trump's tariffs. Sacha Raynaud, whose family owns a small Champagne house, had brought a friend to learn the history of Champagne, which first appeared in the 17th century on the tables of royalty, giving the drink its nickname, 'the king of wines.' 'French people are waking up to what's happening in the United States, and starting to speak about boycotting American products,' she said. Similar worries circulated in the fields. Working in a buttery morning light, a dozen field hands secured knotted brown vines to wires ahead of the spring growing season on freshly plowed earth in the shadow of the Champagne-producing town of Reuil, just west of Épernay. Even these jobs were at risk, said Patrick Andrade, who runs a small company that helps maintain Champagne vineyards. The 12-hectare (30-acre) plot belongs to a small house that exports to the United States, he said. Should sales fall, wine producers would need fewer field hands, and there would be less work for tractor operators, cork makers and bottle makers. In the worst case, he added, it could force Champagne producers to consider ripping out vines. Advertisement On Friday, French Foreign Minister Eric Lombard called the trade war 'idiotic' and said he would travel to Washington soon. 'We need to talk to the Americans to bring the tension back down,' he told French television. France's biggest Champagne houses have stayed conspicuously silent, declining to say anything while waiting to see how Trump's threat would play out -- and whether European officials could get him to back off. Among them was LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, which sells nearly 35% of its wines and spirits in the United States. The company did not respond to a request for comment. Outside LVMH's Moët & Chandon mansion on the Avenue de Champagne, a group of Americans snapped selfies in front of a statue of Dom Pérignon, the monk who invented Champagne. Inside the stately building, no staff members wanted to talk tariffs. Even so, locals whispered rumors that the big houses were upset by the tariff threat, but expected that it could possibly blow over. After all, some said, Bernard Arnault, France's richest man and the head of the LVMH empire, which dominates much of Champagne's production, has a long-standing relationship with the U.S. president and was invited by Trump to his inauguration. Perhaps Arnault's friendship would prevail at the end of the day, they said. But for now, that is all just speculation. The reality is that nothing is certain -- and uncertainty is bad for business. Back at the Michel Gonet Champagne house, Boucher pointed to a display of cuvées that were popular among customers in the United States. Advertisement 'It's just a stressful situation because we don't know if the tariffs will even happen,' he said. 'It's not good for anybody.' This article originally appeared in
