点评:I arrived about 10 minutes before the tour. You have to be careful if you're on the late tours and arriving on the train from Reims to Epernay as they are not every 30 minutes, there are some gaps which could leave you with the need for an on-time train and a fast walk!
The building for tours is very modern and well-designed. A very large barrel in the centre is explained later on the tour. I rehydrated with the aid of the water cooler, spent five minutes reading the boards describing and showing the history of Mercier and then our guide appeared promptly for the 16:45 tour (in English). The history suggests the founder was very forward-looking and had a strong interest in the latest innovations from Europe's industrial revolution.
The tour started with a tasting of their Brut and then we proceeded to the cellars using the the modern lifts which have a pleasant surprise. The train in the cellar isn't on rails it's just a set of linked electric buggies but it's still a nice way to get a tour around the sizeable labyrinth while the guide provides a narration.
Afterwards there was a tasting of a Blancs de noir and Rose Brut upstairs with some advice of food pairing.
I was impressed by how comprehensive the tour was for a short tour. It managed to cram a lot of information into the time without feeling rushed or commercially-driven. I think if you have very limited time in Epernay then the "Speaking of bubbles" tour (45 EUR) is a very good choice. Our tour guide (Aline, I think, I hope I have that right) was very good and didn't mind staying a few extra minutes to chat to the lingering guests.
翻译:我在导游开始前10分钟左右到达。如果参加的是晚些时候的导览活动,并且是乘坐从兰斯到埃佩尔奈的火车前来,那可要小心了——火车并非每30分钟就有一班,中间会有一些间隔时段,这就可能要求你必须赶上准时发车的列车并快速步行才能赶上活动!
用于导览的建筑风格非常现代且设计精良。建筑中央有一个巨大的酒桶,导游会在后续环节对其进行详细介绍。我则借助饮水机补充了水分。我花了五分钟阅读那些介绍Mercier历史的展板,随后导游准时出现,带领我们参加16点45分的英文导览。从历史记载来看,创始人极具远见卓识,对欧洲工业革命带来的各种新发明也抱有浓厚兴趣。
导览伊始,我们品尝了他们的Brut起泡酒;接着便乘坐现代化的电梯前往酒窖,而这次乘梯体验着实给我们带来了惊喜。地窖里的“火车”其实并没有铁轨,只是一组相互连接的电动小车而已;不过在导游的讲解下,乘坐它游览这个庞大的迷宫式酒窖倒也别有一番趣味。
之后,我们在楼上品尝了用黑葡萄酿造的白葡萄酒以及桃红起泡酒,还得到了关于食物搭配的建议。
这次短途游览的内容之丰富令我印象深刻。在有限的时间内,它传递了大量信息,却丝毫没有仓促或商业化推销的感觉。我觉得如果在埃佩尔奈的时间非常有限,那么“Speaking of Bubbles”游览项目(45欧元)是个非常好的选择。我们的导游(我想是阿琳,希望我没记错名字)非常出色,她还乐意多留几分钟,与那些不愿离开的游客聊天。