By Anette “Champagne” Sallmander, published in LOFT The Nordic BOOKAZINE Winter 2008 Issue, Volume #7
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 I got my second name a couple of years ago on a trip to Paris. Usually, when I’m in Stockholm, I’m without makeup, wear workout clothes for rehearsals and exercising. I save the fancy dresses and makeup for my performances. However, this special night in Paris, we went to Hotel Costes, my man and me. I was in a theatrical performance, playing the Gautier catwalk girl in a short skirt, high heels and red lipstick. My best friend had recently met a new love whom she had told about me, her bohemian woman friend. We were to dine together after the performance. Yet, when I entered the restaurant, they did not recognize me in my Gautier persona. After introductions, my husband asked all of us what we wanted to drink. I pulled off my long glove, stretched my hand up in the air, and said “Champagne!” as if there could be no question about it, and slunk into the red velvet armchair. “Enchanté, nice to meet you, Björn”, I said to the love of my friend. “Nice to meet you, Champagne”, he replied.

My new name brought me closer to the luxury liquid made from the finest handpicked grapes – Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, in a region east of Paris, the champagne district, which is comprised of five regions: la Montagne de Reims, la Vallée de la Marne, la Côte des Blancs, la Côte de Sézanne and la Côte des Bars. The soil in this area contains a lot of chalk, bilimnita quadrata, which attracts humidity and retains the sun’s heat during the night. The chalky earth also nourishes the tendrils of vine with minerals that give the grapes an original flavor, which is why only wine producers from this region are allowed to call their product champagne, not other producers of sparkling wines.

   Now, two years after my initiation, I felt compelled to find out more about this magic nectar. To do so, I went to Reims. Two stories about two strong women fascinated me and aroused my curiosity – Madame Pommery and Madame Veuve Clicquot. Both widows, they had developed the inheritance from their husbands. Businesswomen before their time, they started branding the champagne with their personalities. Champagne seems to have had more than its fair share of capable widows. I was drawn to Madame Pommery because of her strong interest in art. Pommery started out as Dubois-Gosset, a Champagne house that was taken over by Narcisse Greno in 1836. It was not until twenty years later that Louis Alexandre Pommery became an associate. Although only involved with the firm for two years before his death, his investment was such that his widow, Jeanne Alexandrine Louise Pommery, was subsequently able to take control. She took a fledgling Champagne house and laid the foundations for the creation of a Grande marque. She moved the house towards the exclusive production of sparkling Champagne, rather than the still variety, which was more prevalent in the late nineteenth century than it is now. “Above ground”, she commissioned a grand house and introduced new lines which suited the English clientele’s taste better – a brut with no more than 6g of sugar per liter. The work “below ground” was particularly impressive. Louise Pommery oversaw the addition of more than 16 kilometers of new tunnels, with fine arches supporting the ceiling. The old Roman chalk mines were then connected with an intricate network of cool cellars, 60 meters deep underground. Artists contributed carvings, frescoes and paintings to the wine house and, indeed, even today the owner is a supporter of art, presenting exhibitions in the wine cellars and in the gardens on the property. The cave is dark and exciting. Millions of dusty bottles lie there in silence, half dreaming half awake, awaiting their future journey to a joyful happening.

   While I was there, a new exhibition was being staged in the wine cellars and the artists were hanging up their art works while the guide related the story of the old wine house. I was thrilled. It takes at least three years to make a bottle of champagne, sometimes longer, during which time they are placed upside down and regularly get tasted and turned by experts.

   Although I enjoy almost all the champagne Pommery has on the market, I must admit that the bottle named after Louise is its most exquisite taste line. The chardonnay grape constitutes the majority in the blending of grapes that make up this line, and together with the vintage it is truly the queen of all Pommery champagnes. Yet, I also like its POP champagne, a small bottle of champagne made for one person, excellent to drink in a bar, representing the same variety as the larger bottles down to every last detail, with even the same significant champagne cork as a promise of quality. The small bottles contain different kinds of champagne, brut to vintage. Young artists, winners of the yearly graphic competition, design the special labels. Because of Pommery’s unconventional thinking, it was natural for the new and present owner, Vranken, to join forces with contemporary art. Between 2005 and 2007, they presented some exhibitions: “L’Idiotie, Supernova” and “L’Emprise du Lieu”. Currently, the exhibition “Contemporary Art in Europe” is being staged, representing the work of 50 young artists from 27 countries in the European community. Another exhibition, the “5th Pommery Experience”, which is being staged this year, shares the space in the cellars with millions of bottles of champagne, aging there for our future enjoyment. At a time when the rest of the art world is taking a frenzied interest in Asian artists, the Pommery show looks at what is happening in the European Union, perhaps because it will be France’s turn to preside over it next year. The most successful art works are those that play with the darkness of the cellars and the long, narrow tunnels, creating surprises around every corner.

   At Pommery, I also had the opportunity to experience the “Four Seasons” champagne, its latest concept, with tastes varied to portray each season: spring, summer, fall and winter. The spring line is a rosé, fresh and flowery. The summer champagne is made only from chardonnay grapes, truly lovely! For the fall line, the champagne is dry and has warm colors. The winter line, with more body than the others, is made out of only Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes, and goes very well with warm, cooked food. After all, why not serve only champagne at a four-course dinner? The various season lines fit very well with fish, meat, cheese and dessert. Champagne for all occasions, sheer delight for champagne lovers.

   For me, champagne is for celebrations or for moments when one is overwrought, sad, cranky… With celebrations, champagne is an obvious accompaniment. When it comes to gloomy emotionality, the effervescent champagne bubbles, framing the moments with sparkling grace, drive away your negative feelings. Champagne is a reminder of lighter moments, and you are glad to be alive. Champagne is the dancing wine – a perfect drink before you go out partying, but also perfect for a romantic afternoon. To enliven the spirit between man and woman, between any lovers, we constantly need to nurture its playful elements. And what seduces more than a glass of champagne, for a breakfast in bed or at totally unexpected moments?

   This year, my family celebrated with champagne on a different and untraditional occasion, the annual Swedish holiday of Walpurgis Night, on the last day of April when the Swedes light a big bonfire outdoors from all the branches and leaves that have gathered during the last year. Instead of the traditional beer usually drunk with barbecue or grilled sausage, we opened some bottles of champagne. Immediately, our celebration reached higher levels, as in rubber boots and raincoats, we sang to welcome the arrival of spring and drank a champagne toast to celebrate the coming summer. I wonder if any champagne producer would ever picture a scene like that in the Stockholm archipelago.

This article was published in LOFT The Nordic BOOKAZINE Winter Issue 2008 Volume #7. It was written by Anette Sallmander, writer, actress, dancer and producer from Stockholm.