by Paige Donner
"Chanel has her No. 5. I have my Charles Heidsieck Champagne cellar No. 9."
- Cecile Bonnefond, President of Charles and Piper Heidsieck
All photos by Paige Donner copyright 2014 all rights reserved
All photos by Paige Donner copyright 2014 all rights reserved
The Charles Heidsieck cellars in Reims, Champagne are legendary. They are some of the best examples of the crayères, the chalk-stone cellars, that are so emblematic of Champagne. These were first excavated by the Romans some 2000 years ago. The stones were then used to the build the city of Reims, a city that was once the capital of France.
If you take a look at the picture here of cellar (crayéres) No. 9, you will see that it resembles the shape of a bottle. The team, led now by Cecile Bonnefond, took that as inspiration to model a new bottle for Champagne Charles Heidsieck. So the bottle shape is inspired by Crayères No. 9 from deep inside the depths of their champagne cellars in Reims.
The cellars have even more historical significance as they were used as shelters during the wars of the last century. There is no elevator to get you back up once you're several hundred feet below ground. So if you do ever get the chance to visit these cellars in Champagne, wear comfortable shoes.
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