The city of Troyes in Aube is often overlooked for Reims and Epernay by visitors drawn to the presence of lordly Champagne houses such as Moët & Chandon, Pol Roger and Bollinger, to name a few.
However, this ‘southern capital of Champagne’ – its half-timbered medieval heart peppered with wine bars and quality bistros – can offer a more multi-layered stay in this effervescent region.
France’s largest outlet malls sit on its outskirts; 40% of the world’s-stained glass is found in the Aube department (with a sizeable portion sequestered in the Saint-Peter-and-Saint-Paul Cathedral); while cycling paths wind out of the city and towards the Lake of Orient, ideal for day-trips.
Only twenty minutes’ drive from Troyes is Montgueux – the Easter Island of Champagne appellations – marooned on its solitary hill. Or head south to arrive amid the Côte des Bar’s constellation of villages set amid 8,000 hectares of vines – home to cult producers such as Cédric Bouchard (Roses de Jeanne), as well as one of the region’s curiosities, the full-bodied rosé – Rosé des Riceys.
Back in Troyes, another local specialty is Prunelle de Troyes, an almond-infused liqueur. Stop into Cellier St Pierre for a tour with Alexandre and a tasting. It’s also the most historic wine shop in town as well as the best connected – an underground tunnel joins its cellar with the cathedral.
Vineyards in Montgueux. Credit: © Studio OG – Troyes La Champagne Tourisme
Six spots for wine lovers
Aux Crieurs de Vin
When you step inside this popular bistro-cum-wine shop you instantly know you’re about to have a meal that satisfies on several levels. Located in Troyes’ medieval heart (famously shaped like a Champagne cork), owner Jean-Michel convivially works the tables in his navy-blue apron serving up a seasonal, daily-changing menu paired with a 400-strong cellar of primarily natural wines. Aube region Champagne and Coteaux Champenois are well represented, including the saline Brut Natures of Montgueux winemaker, Emmanuel Lassaigne. With Jean-Michel’s infectious passion for wine, you’ll buy a bottle for lunch, and one (or maybe three) from the shop on the way out.
Cercle du Vin
This popular aperitif spot is found in the historic centre, conveniently close to the city’s tourism office. Despite only opening last year, the sense of well-established bonhomie is not just due to the comfortable surrounds – Cercle du Vin is run by the avuncular Damien Rémy, well known locally from his restauranteur background prior to becoming a wine and Champagne merchant. As such, he knows his stuff and chatting with him while perusing his selection of 75% Aube region Champagne may offer you more insight on the region than even the tourism office’s €3 short film on the history of Troyes. On the small bites menu, look out for Rémy’s own homemade ‘bloc de foie gras’.
Champagne Hélène Beaugrand
In the village of Montgueux, located on the street named for her AOC-championing, winemaker grandfather, is Champagne Hélène Beaugrand. Here the namesake winemaker produces delicious expressions from three south-facing hectares of vines. In her Le Grand Carré Brut Nature cuvée, Beaugrand has elegantly captured the chalk and salt minerality that defines this terroir. Contact her in advance by email or phone (€25pp, contact@champagne-helenebeaugrand.com) to arrange an hour and a half tasting of five cuvées that she produces with the assistance of her 27-year-old son, Cédric. If you’d like a refresher on the production process, Beaugrand has some wonderfully clear homemade placards (the creation of her daughter) suspended on old clothes hangers.
Chez Philippe
Ever popular Chez Philippe sits at a historic nexus on Rue Champeaux in the half-timbered centre, between the goldsmith house with its protruding turret and the antique boulangerie (the centre’s first renovation success completed in the 60s). Opposite the awning of kitschy Tante Reine (known for its bubbly-fuelled weekend brunches), Chez Philippe is, thanks to its Champagne flights (three small glasses for €16), one of the best places to swiftly get to grips with the profile of the Aube terroir. In its selection are cuvées from Côte des Bar growers including Eric Legrand, Huguenot-Tassin, and Jean Laurent.
Juvenal
You’ll find an irresistible synthesis of historical monument and Champagne bar in Juvenal, on Rue Champeaux. The sofas and art-bedecked storeys of this shining white Gothic-Renaissance mansion feel as if they’ve been this way ever since the Juvenal family first deployed its textiles fortune to move in during the 15th century. To the sound of beats that wouldn’t be out of place in the Balearics, browse the leather-bound menu offering Champagnes from houses such as Ruinart alongside growers like Hélène Beaugrand (see above). Among the signature cocktails, the bestseller is the Rose des Bois – a fragrant Turkish Delight of a cocktail perfect for a hot summer’s day.
Jardin Juvenal-des-Ursins. Credit: © Olivier Douard – Troyes La Champagne Tourisme
Le Quai de Champagne
Bronze sculptures strut in the gardens of this grand fine dining establishment located in a bourgeois villa in the more antique top half of the city centre. Chef Jean-Paul Braga, Portuguese but Troyes-born, offers outstanding value for money with his five-course Discovery Menu (€64). Expect gazpacho with a straw (transforming soup into a health shot); trompe l’oeil tomatoes; and a tonka bean vanilla butter that you’ll want to buy by the kilo. The primarily French wine list has Burgundy well represented, including €14 glasses of organic Huguenot Marsannay up to tempting bottles of Clos de Tart Grand Cru 2017 at €1050. When choosing from the cheese trolley, creamy and complex Chaource, made in its namesake village only 30 minutes’ drive south-east from Troyes, should be in your selection.
Things to do
With the outlet centres’ 85,000 square metres of sales area just outside of town, it’s time to go shopping. You’ll find the factory outlet stores grouped together in Pont-Sainte-Marie, and Saint-Julien-les-Villas, each about a mile outside the city.
Alternatively, hire an e-bike from the Maison de Vélo (€15 per day) and strike out into the countryside. Either cycle up to a pre-arranged tasting in Montgueux (the uphill approaching from Troyes is known as ‘the ramp’ while the downhill the other side is, for its twists, called the ‘escargot’), or make a day of it and follow the Vélovoie des Lacs from Troyes and out to the artificial lakes. Break for lunch at Le Petit Champenois in Lusigny-sur-Barse, with its hearty fare, sunny terrace and impressive coffee selection.
With a galaxy of stained glass, the city has a number of impressive spiritual places to explore. Each offers something different such as the lace-like rood screen in the church of Sainte-Madeleine or the museum of relics in the cathedral.
The city also has a capacious modern art museum, as well as more niche treasures such as Maison de l’Outil et de la Pensée Ouvrière (MOPO). Located in one of the city’s most beautiful medieval courtyards, this engaging museum of tools recently loaned some of its rare exhibits for the restoration of Notre-Dame in Paris.
How to get there
Sip Fleury Champagne selected by sommelier, Honey Spencer, on a Eurostar train to Paris Gare du Nord or fly into Paris-Charles de Gaulle or Orly airports.
Regular train services from Paris Est connect the capital to Troyes in around 90 minutes.
Upon arrival, purchase a Troyes city pass (starting from €18 for 24 hours) for cheaper entry into the city’s many museums, and to benefit from free chocolate tastings among other essentials.
