Simon Porte Jacquemus, French designer and founder of the eponymous brand, has just announced its fanciest collaboration yet, namely one with champagne brand Veuve Clicquot. Together, Jacquemus and Veuve Clicquot have created a reinterpretation of the maison’s prestige cuvée, La Grande Dame 2018.
The limited-edition design combines both brand’s affinities with yellow, using the signature Veuve Clicquot yellow (first introduced in 1877) to embody Jacquemus’ sun-soaked inspiration drawn from the South of France, where the designer hails from. The yellow, intended to represent joy, takes the form of a hand-stitched logo on a draping that covers the cuvée, illuminating the white linen like a ray of sun.
At the heart of the collaboration is a shared homage to women. The story of Madame Clicquot, who took the reins of the house back in 1805 and was named ‘la grande dame de la Champagne’ after her death, captivated Jacquemus, who often cites his own mother as his muse. Fittingly, the limited-edition bottle’s draping was also designed to evoke a family heirloom, as well as drawing on traditional Italian methods of keeping bottles cool in the heat of summer.
The collaboration addresses this age-old issue in another way too, with Jacquemus’ take on ‘Le Rafraîchissoir’, a new wine cooler. Inspired by Medici vases, the fashion brand founder worked with celebrated metalsmith Camille Orfèvre on the design, which comprises a champagne bucket and a glass cooler.
As for the cuvée itself, La Grande Dame 2018, is a deep and precise vintage originally launched in 1972 using L’Art du Pinot Noir grapes. Like its new packaging, the wine is a bright and luminous blend with a “solaire soul”. Subtle and fresh, it’s an apt choice for Veuve Clicquot and Jacquemus’ joyful collaboration.
La Grande Dame Limited Edition by Simon Porte Jacquemus 2018 Champagne can be purchased from Selfridges from 10 September.
