Madame Louise Pommery, after her husband Alexandre died in 1860, ditched the wool estate and turned to making Champagne. She was the genius that developed the first brut Champagne. Champagne at that time was a sweet dessert wine but the British wanted a dry, unsweetened, bubbly drink to have at all times of the day – and Madame Louise delivered. Walking into the Pommery Champagne House is stepping into an art house – and walking through butterflies. Like Alice in Wonderland, I took a trip down 116 steps into 19 kilometers of chalk cellars beneath the estate. The chalk cellars are so vast that they’ve been compared to an underground city. In fact, each section of the cellars is named after a city, which makes “Fetch the Champagne from Manchester” so bizarre, but better than “Fetch the Champagne from Bin 99.” These ancient Gallo-Roman quarries, called crayères, are where the Champagne ages gracefully until ready to pop. It’s like a spa for wine. While wandering through Pommery’s cellars, it’s impossible not to be stunned at the sheer scale of the operation. For starters, the bottles are stored at a specific angle (called riddling) and are rotated regularly by someone with the patience of a saint. The cellars are dark, cool, and delightfully eerie, and they’re decorated with incredible modern art installations. It's as if the bottles are saying, "Not only am I delicious, but I’m also cultured." One of the quirkiest things about the Pommery House is its love affair with contemporary art. Every year, the estate hosts a modern art exhibition right in the cellars. So, literally, amid the bottles are giant sculptures, abstract paintings, and occasionally something so bizarre you’ll think, "Maybe I’ve had too much Champagne." The Pommery House offers everything: history, art, luxury, and a lesson in how to taste the finer things in life. Life is short, and drinking Champagne in a stunning French château is the ultimate fantasy, where it’s scientifically proven (probably) that bubbles make me feel happier. Madame Pommery, born in 1819, died in 1890 – thirty years after her husband – but she became better known as Champagne Pommery, and rightly so! Photographer: Martina Nicolls
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Tuesday, 14 January 2025
Quirky art and bubbly bottles at Pommery Champagne House in Reims
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