Paying tribute to my “Mecca” in Reims, Champagne

Champagne is my perennial favorite alcoholic beverage and for more than 2 decades, Veuve Clicquot has always been my preferred bubbly. For a period, I was even collecting and storing Veuve Clicquot (VC) boxes in my house because I simply adore that bright yellow color. Later on, I was sad to discover that VC in the US unfortunately does not come with a box. When I visited Reims in Champagne, I had to visit the VC winery because I need to pay tribute to my own "Mecca". Unlike the rest of the champagne wineries, which are more typical of your old world wineries, VC is extremely modern, bright and luxurious feeling. I guess this is due to the LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) influence; VC is one of their brands. I went on a tour of their cellar with magnums galore (yum, yum!) and heard the story of Madam Veuve Clicquot, her invention of the riddling rack and méthode champenoise. I was beaming from ear to ear the whole of this time. And like any good winery, they have an amazing wine shop. I bought a dozen VC party flutes and had to ask a good friend to bring them back to San Francisco for me since I was traveling to other countries after France. To all the champagne lovers out there, Santé!