Had a great time at the tasting room of Collard Picard yesterday! Our hostess was very…read moreknowledgeable on the champagnes we tasted, and it was a relatively quiet Wednesday afternoon our party of six seemed to have the room to ourselves! We opted for the prestige tasting, my favorite was the second champagne, the blanc to blanc and their rose was very interesting to my palette since I haven't been exposed to many first cuvée roses before!

I have 2 words for you......Tomato Macaron - omg this is good…read more Seeing a line out the door at Vincent Dallet, the Mr & I thought there was something worth investigating so we hopped right on in. Very small place and they take the personal touch to the extreme - be prepared to wait......and wait. But for the macarons, you will be glad you did. We got an assortment & enjoyed the following. Flavors were not as strong as we find in Pierre Herme or Laudree but they were nevertheless pleasing Tomato - incredible! Sweet jammy like flavor that paired very well with the tender on the inside, crispy on the outside cookie Champagne Peach Cherry Pistachio While Laduree still remains our top macaron winner, the tomato macaron is a worthy contender

Day two of our journey through Champaign country. We stopped at TAITTINGER for tasting. Blown…read moreaway...the tour of the facility, excellent, the gift shop...yes, promised myself would not buy anything...but did. The presenter was nothing less than fantastic...explaining in detail the various Champaigns and the process. We were merged with another group to increase the numbers but were not loss in the crowd. When visiting France, Paris in particular take the time to visit..saunte...

A must visit when close to Paris, it is not a far drive or a train ride to Reims. It is advised to…read moremake reservations before you arrive and the tour is wonderful. The caves are vast and the history, and the craftsmanship of the riddling ismind-boggling,. It is nothing like you'll see in Napa Valley or in the western world. The caves here hold millions of bottles. The history of the family, the champagne house architecture and of course the champagne makes this a fun and cultural experience. Now, shipping back to the U.S. is allowed, just be prepared to pay $$$$.

A great bar/ wine shop with friendly, helpful staff. We came in upon opening and were seated…read morepromptly, they helped us pick wines and recommended what small bites we might like. The champagne was very good, they had a wide selection. As for food, we got a trio of dips (pesto, carrot/peanut butter and a radish/goat cheese), that I wasn't a huge fan of. The pesto was best, but the other two were under seasoned (they do give salt on the platter for you to use) and nothing special in my opinion. We also got an order of their glazed pork and potatoes. Both were very good, the pork (I forgot the cut) was tender and flavorful but a little fatty. The potatoes came with an aioli and both were good. It's a fun place to just come and relax!

Oh my, sometimes you just get lucky. Thanks to previous yelpers we set off to find Aux 3 P'tits…read moreBouchons and we are so glad that we did. After a day of being rained upon we were drenched/saturated/waterlogged and highly resistant to going very far afield. Yet thankfully, down the street and round the corner we found a beacon of loveliness. There was just room for two more...it's a tiny place...and we sat down, grateful for a warm welcome. The wine bottles decorating the shelves are also the wine list, prices marked on each bottle for take out, add 8€ for drink in. A simple, effective way to Puck your fancy. We were cold and damp and our friendly waitress suggested 4 bottles, ranging in price and potency. Our choice was spot on- warm, fruity and capable of creating a mellow feeling. We also sampled the excellent 'simple' board of charcuterie, cheeses, fruit, nuts, olives and pickles. What a feast this was. Every mouthful a different taste combination and every one delicious. To top a great evening we were offered suggestions of places to visit tomorrow...all good although we might just wend our way back to Aux 3 P'tits Bouchons. A fabulous find.