Anniversary fun, part 1

This past weekend, C and I headed out of town to celebrate our anniversary.  I have class this weekend and will be leaving for the US straight after, so we wanted to spend a bit of quality time together beforehand. We had a Wonderbox to use up, and ended up selecting a fantastic little place near Epernay/Reims.

As you may or may not know, my family is of Finnish origins, so when I came across an imported Finnish hunting chalet nestled in the middle of a vineyard, I knew that was our spot. C was worried that we wouldn't be treated very well (as is sometimes the case with these sorts of "boxes"), but our hosts were absolutely lovely.

 

The entire chalet had been very thoughtfully decorated, and the whole thing was just so darn cozy.

 

There were bathrobes and slippers, an adorable little bedroom and reindeer skins on the walls. 

And then there was my favorite part - the indoor BBQ. We had a blast warming up in front of the fire and then cooking our dinner once the embers had burned down.

There was also a fully-stocked kitchen with a small fridge, coffee maker, dishes, silverware, etc. (and little raclette paddles for melting cheese during the cold months!).  We brought our own food, but they also offer a BBQ "basket" for 20€ per person. 

The next morning, we had breakfast on the little patio out back, and once again, our hosts did not skimp.  At our last B&B experience in Limoges last month, we'd paid a lot more for our room and ended up with literally a piece of toast each and a hot drink.  This place - at 60€ a night - offered up a multi-grain baguette, a delicious chocolate chip brioche, fresh croissants, yogurt, cheese, OJ & a hot beverage.

The owners also have their own vineyard, selling their champagne under two different labels.  Part of our stay included a guided tour of their exploitation and a tasting, and you could tell that the husband was just as passionate about his grapes as his wife was about decorating.  He had a very original approach for his vignoble, following the lunar calendar for planting and harvesting, and waxing on about biodynamism.  He used mainly natural remedies for his plants, as well as other elements -such as quartz - to attract the moon's energy to the roots of the vines.

Their champagne was also very tasty, and he made a few special champagnes that were "extra-dry" and "nature", ie low-sugar champagnes that are supposed to help you avoid hangovers.  He also stamps the date the champagne was bottled on the label so that consumers know how long they will be able to keep it.  The prices were reasonable too, starting at around 13.50€ for a bottle.

They also have a gite that can hold up to 20 people and a B&B with three rooms, and the chalet can be rented out just for an evening BBQ.  I'd highly recommend this place if you are looking for a weekend getaway or if you're heading to the Champagne region for some tastings - though the one downside is that you do need a car to get there.  But I left there Sunday feeling so relaxed, and it has been ages since I have been able to so thoroughly disconnect from the world and just be.

Here is their website in case anyone would like to check it out: http://www.la-boulonne.com/