Budget wine trips in France ¢ñ
Champagne-Ardenne
Champagne might be prohibitively expensive to drink, but it's a great place to visit, with all the major producers used to hosting tours round their cellars. In Epernay, stroll along the recently revamped Avenue de Champagne (termed "the world's most drinkable address" by Winston Churchill) and gawp at the 19th-century mansions belonging to the likes of Moët & Chandon (+33 3 2651 2020, moet.com), Mercier, Pol Roger, De Castellane, Perrier-Jouët and Boizel. For €15 you get a tour of Moët's vast, 27km-long cellars and a glass of Moët Brut Imperial.
Rhône-Alpes
The Rhône Valley is rich in wine, being home to the likes of Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage in the north and Gigondas and Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the south. Do some research on websites such as yapp.co.uk and provencefoodandwine.com beforehand. In the southern Rhône, visit Domaine de Beaurenard in Châteauneuf-du-Pape (+33 4 9083 7179, beaurenard.fr) for a fascinating (and free) no-appointment-necessary tasting in their ancient cellars; and in the northern Rhône visit Maison Chapoutier (+33 4 7508 9261, chapoutier.com) in Tain l'Hermitage for the same. And, if you can wait until January next year, head to Ampuis for the four-day-long Foire d'Ampuis (+33 4 7456 1820), where for €8 you get a free glass and a chance to meet 60 Rhône producers.
Bordeaux, Aquitaine
Travellers to the city of Bordeaux can find the price of even the most basic glass of wine alarming, so beware. The best place in town to get a decent, well-priced drink is Le Bar ¨¤ Vin (3 cours du 30 Juillet, +33 5 5600 4347, baravin.bordeaux.com). A light, spacious wine bar attached to l'Ecole du Vin (+33 5 5600 2285, vins-bordeaux.fr), it could hardly be more central, being a few hundred yards from the Grand Th¨¦âtre. It is also full of information about tours through the region as well as wine courses in l'Ecole itself. Heavily subsidised by the CIVB (the Bordeaux producers' association), it has a wide-ranging selection of local wines by the glass at absurdly accessible prices.
There is no shortage of places to stay in and around Bordeaux but, again, these can be pricey. Among the best value are the Hôtel de S¨¨ze and its sister, the Hôtel Royal M¨¦doc (rue de S¨¨ze, +33 5 5681 7242, hotelsezemedoc.free.fr). They are right in the heart of the city and are both much favoured by the English wine trade. They're simple and basic but, with rooms starting from €60 for a double, they're great value. For something a bit more wacky and out-of-town, try the wonderful treehouses (+33 5 5646 2948, naturacabana.fr) in the grounds of the Château de Malleret, 15km from Bordeaux. Prices start from €145 for three in a cabin.