Champagne Pommery – Press Trip

Champagne Pommery – Press Trip

One of the great parts of our job is putting together and attending press trips for our clients.  Press trips provide us with the opportunity to immerse journalists in our clients, helping them to experience firsthand exactly what the client is all about.   

When one of these clients happens to be one of the largest Grande Marque Champagne houses in the world, you know you are in for a treat. Maintaining a balance between working and enjoying the press trip – is a real skill! But one that we have honed.

For our trip to Reims in September 2019 we were also celebrating 40 years of Champagne Pommery’s premier Champagne, Cuvée Louise.  The iconic 1979 vintage was named after Madame Pommery’s daughter Louise, and represents the Maison’s flare for innovation, quality and exceptional taste.

On arrival in Paris we headed straight for a glass (or two) of Pommery on a rooftop overlooking the Eiffel Tower, the sun began to set and it was the perfect opportunity to get to know our guests better, introducing them to the Pommery team and learning more about their beats and upcoming features they’re working on. 

Following this we arrived at Lucas Carton, the 1 Michelin starred, Pommery flagship restaurant that would be the location of the Cuvee Louise celebration.  We were greeted by the owners of Vranken Pommery Monopole, Mr & Mrs Vranken who proceeded to give an inspiring talk on the history of Pommery and specifically Madame Pommery – with a stunning tribute to Cuvée Louise. The menu, created by Julien Dumas was delicious and the journalists were given real insight into the Pommery brand and its history. 

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It goes without saying we enjoyed the most divine food paired with some of the most wonderful vintages from the Pommery domain.  The wine was served from magnum, offering a truly complex taste – the champagne matures better and at a slower rate within the magnum, it has twice the volume of a standard bottle but with the same neck size. 

The following morning we woke up in Reims, having travelled down through the night.  After a light breakfast it was time to head to the Pommery domain and a tour of the vinyards and caves. We visited at harvest, so were lucky enough to watch the grapes arriving and being processed.  The harvesting only happens throughout a few weeks of the year and therefore our journalists really got insight into the champagne making process.  The Elizabethan neo-Gothic style of the domain is in contrary to Champagne’s architectural tradition – making the domain ‘overground’ just as exciting as ‘underground’.

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The Pommery domain itself is awe inspiring with heavily worn stone steps leading you 30 metres down below the earth and into the caves.  You can feel Madam Pommery throughout the property and get a real sense of what a visionary she was.  The chalk quarries were turned into the wine cellars and are below ground to keep cool at 10C. 

Once in the caves, you are enveloped by fascinating contemporary art, an addition to the Pommery wine cellars made by the Vrankens and something that attracts visitors from far and wide.  The current exhibition #experience is a showcase of various genres and wonderful artists. The exhibits change over time and no theme is too out of this world.

The press trip was a feast for the eyes, ears and mouth – the domain is such an astonishing place for architecture. The history of the region, the champagne, and of course of Madam Pommery, is fascinating – Madam Pommery was a trailblazer. Widowed in 1860, she triumphed in creating the world’s first commercial brut champagne. She was one of the first company directors in France to create retirement and health funds for her employees and when she died she was the first woman in France to receive a state funeral.

Being able to share the Pommery experience in this way resulted in some incredible coverage in Forbes and the influencers reached huge numbers with their carefully curated posts. We forged relationships with the group and have worked with them on other projects and for other clients.

We love working with Pommery Champagne, not withstanding the fact we all LOVE champage, but the PR and social media we do for them is always changing, always fun and really impactful.

Bring on the next press trip to Reims, where we will take another group of enthusiastic journalists and influencers to the domain to #experiencepommery.

Thanks to:

@CrazyCatLadyLdn

@eastlondonmornings

@mylondonfairytales

Ruby Bhogal – Great British Bake Off Finalist

Nicole Trilivas – Forbes

For joining us on this press trip and to Champagne Pommery for being a wonderful host.