~ Les Aulnois Chateau-Hotel Reims, Champagne, France ~

         

“ Elegance and refinement, kindness and delicious home cooking enhanced by a personal
welcome from Elisabeth. A rare experience that evokes a way of life in a more graceful
age, remembering that great love affairs always start with Champagne. ”

The elegant dining-room, with chandeliers that light up the table tops,
opens onto the salon boosting rare "Zuber" wall-paper

Château les Aulnois Hotel Epernay 61, Rue du Général de Gaulle 51530 - Pierry (Epernay), France Email: AulnoisILA@ila-chateau.com 2 km South of Epernay on RD 951 30 km South of Reims via N 51 40 km from Reims-Champagne Airport Paris 150 km - Calais 310 km - Strasbourg 350 km Luxembourg 240 km - Brussels 260 km - Geneva 530 km Owners: Elisabeth Vollereaux Rooms / Suites: 3 / 2 Rates: from € 150 / from € 230 (+ 1 stylish self-catering cottage adjoining the      castle with private entrance, lounge, kitchen, 2 bedrooms en-suite and      sun terrace) Restaurant: Table d'Hotes (with room package and Champagne included) All reservations (rooms and restaurant) must be made in advance Weather depending, dinner may be served either in the kitchen,      dining-room or garden Special stopover package available for individual business travellers      (subject to availability) Private enclosed parking Superb and large taxus topiary garden Free Wi-Fi access Entirely non smoking Rarely closed (but prior reservations always mandatory) Possibility to rent the whole property for a private party Business meetings facilities for up to 20 people Ideal for any events around the ancient grape press in the former      ground-floor Champagne cellars Four golf courses in the nearby surroundings Cooking courses with a limited number of persons Guided tours through the vineyards - visits of cellars to learn all aspects      of the Champagne making process Champagne tasting and possibility to take part of a day picking grapes      during the harvest time.

~ One of our "Chateaux & Hotels de Charme" ~
Click here to enjoy / discover our entire portfolio

~ View of the mansion from the taxus topiary garden ~

An Amazing Champagne Lady

The small wine producing village of Pierry is just a few minutes drive away from Epernay, the capital of Champagne, which enjoys a rich architectural heritage of mansions, castles and miles of vaulted cellars dug out in chalk dating back to the 18th century. Epernay and Reims are amongst the top priority for a visit - primarily to see the cathedral at Reims which took 300 years to complete and is the most sacred building in France, but also the famous Champagne firms in both towns. In Epernay do not miss the Musée du Champagne et de la Préhistoire and explore at least one of the underground caves ... in the steps of so many illustrious people, Napoléon and Wellington being just two.

Built as a Champagne house surrounded by vineyards, Chateau Les Aulnois is a historic landmark classified as inscrit. It is the home of Elisabeth who has meticulously restored it throughout and just recently opened as an impeccable Maison d'Hotes. With only a few lovely en-suite bedrooms, the conveniences of an hotel are available within the ambiance of an elegant country place on the outskirts of greater Epernay. It is an ideal base for exploring the whole Champagne vineyards.

But one of Chateau Les Aulnois' secrets to success is the highly personalized service offered by Elisabeth as well as her natural kindness.

Here there is no such thing as "ce n'est pas possible".

The inventive meals are invariably based on fresh local products and owe a great deal to Elisabeth who does everything personally to ensure top-notch bourgeois cuisine. She has the hype and attention of a really talented food-passionate cook when preparing her favorite recipes. When it comes to food, at Les Aulnois the guests all share one thing in common : they love to eat ... and the large table d'hotes in the kitchen with its huge fireplace are the scene of warm and friendly informal gatherings for Champagne cuisine lovers.

The bedrooms, identified by the ladies' names who successively owned the place since 1750, are extremely comfortable. All have been decorated with different schemes of Toile de Jouy and in each there is a delightful blend of antique furniture. Some have a luriously fitted bathroom, beautiful exposed beams or romantic views over the remarkable 18th century "French Garden" with its huge well-shaped evergreen buxus trees forming a beautiful eye-catching view, bringing an aura of peace and creating the most attractive figures. There is also a stylish 2-bedroom self-catering cottage adjoining the main building with private entrance, sun terrace and superb furniture from the Art Deco period.

Other amenities of Les Aulnois are a reading-room and mainly a grand salon boosting rare examples of 1840 hand-painted wall-paper from Zuber, depicting magnificently grey-and-white famous scenes from the Greek and Roman Mythology ... All exciting love affairs between Pyramus & Thisbe, Apollo & Daphne, Arethusa & Alpheus or Juno & Echo...

Erudite connoisseurs be warned : you may be tempted !

Elisabeth preparing her delicious cuisine
bourgeoise based on her culinary heritage

Partial view of the reception lounge featuring the
fabulous and rare hand-painted Zuber wallpaper

The Suite SIMONNE, decorated with Toile de Jouy
"Ming" fabrics, enjoys views over the garden
(Simonne was Andrew Delaplace's wife who
built Les Aulnois between 1776 and 1780)

~ The large romantic boudoir / bathroom of the Jeanne-Charlotte suite ~

~ The elegant and comfortable reading-room ~

~ A lovely view over the taxus topiary garden with buxus hedges ~

~ The Art Deco drawing-room in the self-catering cottage ~

Jean-Rémy Moët conducting a visit of his Champagne cellars
with his friend Napoléon 1er, on 26 July 1807

~ Detail from a 1908 American advert for Pommery Champagne ~

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