First off, to be clear, this is a review of the cellar tour, NOT the cafe; that's another review. That being said, Veuve Clicquot is a massive champagne winery with a fascinating backstory. I won't get into that here, but, if you take a winery tour, you will hear about it. There's actually a movie on Netflix detailing it as well, but the winery points out what they got wrong. Anyway, this place is easy to get to, either from Reims itself, or on a day trip from Paris. From Paris, you could take a bus, or take the TGV (45 minutes to an hour), from Gare de l'Est (be sure to validate your ticket before you board!). If traveling locally, if you have a vehicle, they have lots of parking in their lot across the street. Once you arrive, check in at the front desk, then they will direct you where to go. Be on time - seriously, you're super rude for something like this if you're late. They will try to accommodate you if you are, but just plan extra time. Anyway, where you go after checking in depends on which tour you booked, and there are several options. Your level of booking will impact the champagne you taste at the end, but my guess is the tour is relatively the same regardless. You start the tour with a quick video and intro to the tour guide, then it's off to the cellars. The cellars are actually crayeurs, or old chalk mines from way back. These cellars are deep, hence dark and cool, which makes them ideal for making champagne. While on the tour, they'll discuss the history, the technology, the craft, and so on, all in different chambers of the crayeur. Interestingly, Veuve Clicquot actually invented a technique that revolutionized champagne making at the time, a process that is still done today (though via much more modern methods). They do two to three tours at a time, so if one crowd gets rowdy, I can see how that would get loud, as others have said in other reviews, but it was not an issue on my tour. The culmination of the tour, and probably also the loudest part, is the tasting. Again, depending on what you booked, you will have varying levels of quality. This part is particularly fun, and the tastings are delicious! They provide lots of detail about the wine, how it's aged, its flavor, and so on. It's very interesting, and even more so if you're a fan of the brand. After the tasting, you return back to the main building, though a different entrance than you left. They do have a boutique with lots of great items, including some famous vintages (such as 2015), so it's definitely worth taking a look. If you feel so inclined, grab a bottle of La Grand Dame, then hit up the cafe outside (which is a different review). Overall, this place is really quite amazing, and they've got things organized incredibly well. If you can only choose one or two tastings in your time here, this would be a solid one to choose. read more

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I love Veuve, but the tour and tasting was only ok. Three tours happening what seems to be almost simultaneously, where we could here a child singing from another private group. It made it very difficult to hear our guide even after getting much tighter as a group. The tasting took place in the dark crayeres, which was cool, but would have been nice to sit down and relax in a nicely lit room like other tastings like Ruinart, which is also owned by LVMH. Why not keep it consistent?? read more

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin - Beer, Wine & Spirits Near Me - Rheims, 51

In A Nutshell: -If you enjoy Veuve Clicquot champagne, you need to take a trip to beautiful champagne country to their HQ. -Everything from their color scheme, to their vast properties (private/public), the professionals who work for the company & of course the bubbly are - 100% SUPERB. -My wife and I had fun trying to find the tasting room, which we first ended up at one of their private properties about 20 minutes away from the tasting room. -Once we finally found it, we enjoyed the clean layout & the tastings. -It's pretty cool to visit champagne country, especially since I live close to Napa Valley & visiting other wine countries in Australia and New Zealand. Overall, Veuve Clicquot was already my favorite champagne, but now I have a great memory, which will result in a customer for life! read more

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The mother ship as besides local Chandon, this is the bubbly we drink the most of. Highlights: - Cave tour: impressive and informative - Vueve history: discovered vueve meant window and the Ponsardin at the end was her maiden name - Cave history: used for a sanctuary village during the world wars and materials from cave were used to build the town - Staircase: year on each step - Classy color scheme inclusion: their signature yellowish orange was everywhere--from flowers to staff apparel. Lowlights: - Due to a special event weekend there was no tasting and the store was closed. :-( So cool just to be at the headquarters of one of my faves. I'd like to come back to taste on a regular day. read more

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin - Visit during a special weekend - Beer, Wine & Spirits Near Me - Rheims, 51

To visit the caves in Reims, you must make an appointment, receive a confirmation email, and respond to the email before you are granted access. The visit lasts about an hour, costs 25 Euros ($30 USD) and includes a glass of the Brut Yellow Label. I requested a time two weeks in advance and got my confirmation three days later through Veuve Clicquot. There is a parking lot if you are driving, and a bus line stops directly in front of the property if you come by public transit. There is a spacious waiting area upstairs next to the gift shop which has pictures of the caves and a video of the company, giving you an overview of the tour. Luckily our group only had 5 guests and one of us had limited mobility, so we had the luxurious use of an elevator along with our excellent enthusiastic guide who loved her job and superbly shared the history of Veuve Clicquot. Tours are offered in several languages and can include several types of tastings, as well as private tours, so pick one which suits your taste and budget. The descent into the caves also makes the temperature descend to around 53 F, so bring a warm sweater with you! Reims was originally a textile town, and the caves where the champagne is stored were excavated for their clay. The monuments above ground are made from the clay taken from these caves, and the clay was used to wash the textiles manufactured in the city. The champagne industry use of these caves is just practical recycling of the empty "Swiss cheese" holes created by the dominant city industry since the temperature stayed a constant 53F all year round and they had the space:) There are over 27 kilometers (16 miles) of caves, so our tour only covered a small portion of the extensive underground network. During the wars, many people lived in the caves and there were designated areas for arms as well as medical care. One of the things Madame Clicquot did was honor long time workers with plaques in the craters with their names, dates of service, and jobs. Monsieur Raguet worked for the company for 57 years! One of the inventions of madame Clicquot was the riddling rack, which was originally just a door with holes drilled into it! Today it's all mechanized, but the bigger bottles are still riddled by hand, allowing the yeast to settle to the neck by slowly turning the bottle upside down in precise movements. The oldest bottle of Veuve Clicquot (1893) is kept in a special secured vault and is probably the most priceless bottle in the world. Not every year produces a Millésime, or vintage year, but the ones at Veuve Clicquot are each marked on the stairs out of the cave. The specially made glasses (available in the gift shop) for the tasting encouraged the bubbles to dance long after the pour, and ended our tour with an effervescent flourish. read more

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If you visit any Champagne houses in Reims this is the one you have to try. Amazing Staff gorgeous facility and Excellent Champagne.I only wish I could find the stemware they use during the tastings. read more

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This was an amazing tour--we elected the aromatic tasting at 10:00 am on a Wednesday and it was a very educational and impressive tour. Our guide was personable, spoke effective English when discussing taste subtleties (his third language!), And was quite well trained and knowledgeable. We left impressed with the history, Madame Cliquots innovations and contribution to the field, and the firm's passion for quality. The regulations within France's champagne authorities are quite strict and it was interesting to hear that side of the story too. We tasted two 2008 vintage years (brut and rose) and a 1989 and 1990 brut and rose. All were amazing and quite different. We had a fabulous time , are now loyal fans of the brand and enjoyed our morning. Excellent tour. read more

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Oui, fine champagne from Rheims, France! Yum, the taste of fine champagne as how I recall from my Parisian exploration to ring in 2011 with renewed hope, joy, good health and much happiness. Veuve Clicquot is part of the Moët Hennessey USA family. Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin is always one of my favorite champagne abeit its extreme high price... Life is short, so drink to be merry! read more

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Our half a day's excursion to Reims from Paris was mainly devoted to a tour of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin's (VCP) caves and a tasting of their champagne. Champagne tasting was on our short list of things to do in Paris, as the Champagne-Ardenne region is only a 45-minute ride on the TGV (44€ round trip/pp). My sister booked our tour a few months ahead of time via email, and I suggest that you do the same to ensure your place in the tour. We walked to VCP, but took the bus back to town. Veuve Clicquot is only a 45 minute walk from Reims' train station, but if you'd rather not walk, you can take Bus 6 from the town center (across from McDonald's) for €1 and some change each way. The bus driver gives change, so no need to worry about having the exact change. The tour lasts about an hour, and it costs 20€ on its own, 25€ with a full glass of their non-vintage champagne. The tour is worth doing even if you're not a champagne lover. It starts at the visitor center, where the tour guide describes VCP's history. She then leads you outside to the entrance to the caves. VCP has 24 kilometers of caves and it's a sight to see. You have to descend about 25 meters from street level in order to get down to the caves via stairs. Walk down the stairs carefully and follow her closely to avoid getting lost in their maze of crayères! There she explains the various stages of champagne making and the differences between vintage and non-vintage bottles of champagne. Oh and do look out for the display of one of the bottles of VCP champagne that were recently discovered in 2010 by divers exploring a shipwreck in Finnish waters. These 170 year old bottles had survived the shipwreck and aged well 160 ft below the ocean's surface. Amazing! At the end of the tour, she took us to the botique/tasting room where beautiful champagne glasses awaited. She demonstrated how to open the bottle with a hiss rather than a pop, and poured. The champagne tasted great as expected. I fell in love, however, with their glasses. Luckily, they were also for sale and did not have the winery's name imprinted on the glass itself. I just love their shape and how elegant they look. They were 12€ each and came in a set of 6. I bought one set and thankfully, they survived many train rides and our flight back to the U.S. Now, every time I drink champagne from that glass, I will make a toast to Veuve Clicquot, the widow who created this great champagne house that has withstood the test of time! read more

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I love me some Veuve. Veuve Clicquot is the ultimate ladies' champagne, of course, because it was created by a woman. The winery is huge, it actually reminds me of a little town. There is not really much around it either although it is not far from the famous cathedral. The tour is very nice and the tour guides are very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. I'd imagine it takes quite a bit of time to train someone to give these types of tours since you have to know the whole back-story of the company and all the details regarding how wine is made. We tried four different champagnes, which were all delicious and while I was tempted to purchase a bottle, I knew I would be going to Moet & Chandon next and planned to purchase a bottle there. SN: When I arrived back to Paris and headed to the Louis Vuitton store, I was supplied with endless glasses of Veuve, so I got to indulge quite a bit afterall. read more

Veuve seems to make levels of champagne for all price points. You can get smoething moderately priced or something really expensive. So you can go casual or high end.Recently got a tate of the 1990 Grande Dame. Great acidity, effervescence and a smooth palate and finish. To get ghetto, that shit is slammin'! This is one of those examples where I now understand why the wine is so revered. read more

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin - Beer, Wine & Spirits Near Me - Rheims, 51

As part of our day touring the Champagne region, we wanted to book a tour with a big champagne house, so we chose Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin. Our guide made the reservations. The tour was 20 euros a person and included a large glass of champagne at the end of the tour. Our guide talked us through the champagne process and walked us down to their caves. He explained the history of Madame Clicquot and the explosion of her business. We also had an opportunity to meet one of the cave employees, the guy who riddles the bottles...he riddles thousands of bottles a day. Amazing! The tour was wonderful, but the gift shop was the fun part! We enjoyed every part of this tour! read more

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The tour was informative and the champagne was amazing. We did the Madam Clicquot tour. The tour is based around the founder's life. A very nice story that makes one appreciate the brand even more. The tour felt to polished and little personality , just the facts. The highlight as one would expect is the actual tasting. Have my wife's and mine favorite champagne on the site where it is produced was rewarding. read more

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We did the vintage tasting and a 2 hour tour for 90 euro each. Exceptional. Very informative tour led by an enthusiastic guide. The caves, their history, and seeing the actual facilities was great. The aroma garden is a very nice touch. Tasting was led by a staff sommelier Vincent. We tasted the 1989 Rose, 2004 Rose, 1990 Blanc, and 2005 Blanc accompanied by cheeses and breads. He leads a great tasting and is obviously very passionate about the house's wines. Vincent has heavy hands, especially when pouring a bottle that retails for $250+ per bottle (1989 rose). Each pour was 4 oz or more at least. The wine and reputation of the house speak for themselves when it comes to quality and status, and they maintain the same level with the vintage tasting and tour. Definitely pay up and do the vintage tasting, worth every dime. read more

We had a 9:30 am tour. Our guide was so very knowledgeable. And so entertaining. The tour was very informative and thoroughly enjoyable!! Absolutely worth every penny! All the staff was helpful and friendly! Very classy! And of course lots of fun things to buy with the VCP logo in the boutique! If you are coming to Reims, definitely put this tour on your list! Enjoy! Sante' read more

They are very polished & slick here, like many of the large wineries I've been to in Napa & Sonoma. The fact that they do tastings without a tour is always a plus in my book. Staff is extremely nice, courteous and easy on the eyes. Good visit. read more

Roll out the Red Carpet and Pop some bottles of Veuve that is !!!! We tried to get in last minute and there were gracious enough to accommodate us. The tour is almost 2 hours but well worth the trek to the Reims (pronounced Rance for my non French speaking friends). Madame Clicquot was a woman with a plan,vision and mission. She created a product that has stood the test of time. I personally have drank my fair share of Clicquot in both happy occasions as well as sad and have never been disappointed. You will learn about this companies rich history, marketing/ adverting techniques that they have used over the years and the best part of course is the tasting after the tour has recapped. Our tour guide was a gracious host and you can tell she enjoys her job very much. She allowed a friend and i a taste of something vintage from 2004 it knocked my socks off. Don't forget to check the stairs to see if you were born in a vintage year I was maybe thats why I'm so special. read more

Enjoy the tour, and buy lots of yummy champagne!

Twenty five Euros for a mediocre tour and one tasting is not my idea of good, or even above average. This was the least complete of my many tours in Reims and Epernay. This house is just resting on its laurels. I am not a big fan any longer, though I appreciate the story of Madame Clicquot. The poor guide had such an accent (Chinese, I think), and could not answer any questions about the production. Go elsewhere and really get your money's worth, as well as learn something about champagne. read more

A interesting and fun afternoon learning about Clicquot House. Just go!