Only 14 spots are available for anyone wanting to take part in a historical moment for heritage Champagne house Veuve Clicquot. That is the “Cellar in the Sea” experience, a specially curated expedition marking the first time the Maison’s submerged ageing experiment has been made available to the public.
As part of a 50-year ageing experiment, Veuve Clicquot lowered bubbles into the depths of the Baltic Sea in June 2014, inspired by the 2010 discovery where a team of divers off the south of the Aland islands uncovered 168 bottles of Champagne – 47 from Veuve Clicquot – in a two-century-old shipwreck. During a tasting several months later, those submerged bottles were apparently of excellent quality, spurring Veuve to then create a “Cellar in the Sea” to age wine in a controlled aquatic environment.
On June 18, 2014, a selection of NV Yellow Label, Vintage Rose 2004 and demi-sec wines was placed in the Alanda Vault underwater wine cellar in a bespoke metal cage. Essentially, this has turned the depths of the Baltic into the ideal underwater cellar, accounting for all the many issues that could arise from such a varied setting such as environmental pressure and light.
You can read more about the experiment over at LVMH.
And so this expedition is the first chance the public has to interact with the cellar, dubbed the inaugural “solaire voyage” for discerning travellers who like mixing Champagne with adventure. It’ll take place between June 22 and 25 this year, where guests will start the journey touring Veuve Clicquot’s vineyards and vegetable gardens in Champagne, France with a tasting in the cellars before a VIP gala dinner at the famed Hôtel du Marc and an overnight stay.
After that’s all done and dusted, guests will be flown to the Aland Islands to embark on a sailing adventure aboard the Albanus with several gastronomic experiences planned, leading up to an overnight stay on the remote island of Silverskar. The third day will be when all the action takes place, starting with some morning fishing before heading to the Cellar in the Sea just off the coast of Klobben.
You might want to make sure you have you’re diving credentials locked in by then as experienced divers will be able to head on down to see the Veuve Clicquot Cellar in the Sea.
The fourth day, June 25, is a bit vague when it comes to the itinerary. The official schedule reads “appreciate the beauty of the early-morning light over a local breakfast before continuing the new horizons.” But since this is such a one-off experience for Champagne lovers, we can only assume there’ll be some surprises packed into the tail-end of the trip.
Bookings are open now for the Veuve Clicquot Cellar in the Sea expedition and the price will be upon application.
