Adding the sparkle to Powerboat P1

Champagne and motorsport are inextricably linked, while Taittinger and Powerboat P1 are the perfect match. We look at the history between boats and bubbly

A victory celebration without champagne is like a Powerboat P1 event without sea. You just need it; it’s part of the territory. No podium presentation feels complete until a magnum of the bubbly stuff has been sprayed exuberantly in the air, exploding firework-like, to form frothy arcs that cascade down towards the jubilant faces of the victorious. It’s decadent, spectacular and integral: the melliferous taste of success.

It feels as though this ritual has been a part of fast, glamorous sports since time immemorial, but not so. Given that motorsport on land and sea has been around for more than 100 years, and that champagne has been around for over three centuries, this kind of victory salute is a comparatively recent arrival. The first such occurrence at a major motorsport event is credited to 1967, when a spirited American racer called Dan Gurney sprayed a magnum of champagne after winning the Le Mans 24 Hours sportscar race for Ford and the Shelby team.

The story goes that Gurney saw Ford boss Henry Ford II and team owner Carroll Shelby, and their wives, just below the winners podium – along with a bunch of journalists who had rubbished the team’s chances of success. The temptation of soaking them all proved too great for Gurney, and thus a tradition of pop, shake and spray was born.

But – now - it’s hard to think of a stronger visual representation of success than the explosive spray of champagne from a bottle held by a victor in race overalls. The crowd always loves such moments, too. But spare a thought for the people who put the champagne in the bottle in the first place. For such things are not the work of a moment.

The champagne sprayed by the winners at the end of a Powerboat P1 Grand Prix of the Sea round has been made from three grape varieties (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) that have to be picked, pressed separately, fermented over winter in stainless steel vats and blended the following spring.

This is then bottled with a little yeast and sugar before being left in the cellars – for three years – to undergo the secondary fermentation that produces the bubbles and alcohol. After that, it undergoes the final process of maturation, which in this case extends far beyond the stipulated minimum time for champagne of 15 months. Finally, the bottle is gradually inverted over several days so that the sediment can be removed. Then it is re-corked, labelled and ready to be sprayed over all and sundry. Or – shock! – drunk. (It does happen.)

That is the process for creating a bottle of Taittinger’s Brut Réserve, the champagne of choice for winning Powerboat P1 crews and those in the VIP enclosures at grands prix. Taittinger has a reputation for being, in the company’s words, “champagne for the independently minded”, so its association with powerboating’s elite – who are as independent and free-thinking as they come – is apposite.

There are other similarities, according to Tarik Taittinger, great grandson of Champagne Taittinger founder Pierre Taittinger and nephew of current head Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger. “We put in a lot of work and time to ensure a bottle of champagne is as good as it can be, but then it is drunk comparatively quickly,” Tarik says. “It’s similar for Powerboat P1’s teams. They put in a huge amount of effort and preparation before a race, but the race is very short relative to the preparation time.

“I was at the Powerboat P1 French Grand Prix at Marseille and I watched the technicians at work. They were extremely precise and disciplined in what they were doing and it made me think of us making champagne, which requires a similar level of precision and discipline.”

Powerboat P1 and champagne also share an enviable sense of glamour, luxury and sophistication. “They are both high-quality products,” says Tarik. “They are seen as exclusive and are appreciated by people all over the world.”

Taittinger is no stranger to fast, glamorous sports – they are a sponsor of the Aston Martin Racing team and a previous Formula 1 grand prix sponsor. But this is the company’s first year with Powerboat P1. The tie-up came about after a conversation between Tarik and his friend Philippe Benhamou, who also happens to be one of Powerboat P1’s original co-founders.

Tarik says Taittinger was attracted to Powerboat P1 because it is comparatively new and going places. Again, he sees a synergy with Taittinger, which recently returned to the control of the Taittinger family after being in the hands of an American investment consortium. “For us, it is like the rebirth of Taittinger number two,” says Tarik. “We like the fact that Powerboat P1 and Taittinger have both renewed their brands recently.”

This return for Champagne Taittinger makes it the only champagne house still under the control of the family whose name it bears. Champagne Taittinger dates from 1932, but its roots go back to 1734, and the Jacques Fourneaux champagne house. Today, its reputation is strong – 2007 was its most successful year yet, with 5.5-million bottles sold – and the high proportion of Chardonnay (a Taittinger hallmark) continues to give its champagnes their distinctive delicacy and finesse. The Comtes Blanc 1998, Taittinger’s top-of-the-range cuvée, is especially good at the moment, says Tarik.

Far too good to spray, no doubt, but you wouldn’t bet against such a fine vintage being smashed against the bow of a boat during a launch ceremony. That tradition has been in use since for as long as the world has had champagne and common practice for more than 100 years. Nor would you bet against it being quaffed by the celebrating winners of the next Powerboat P1 Grand Prix of the Sea. But only after they’ve had their podium fun with the Brut Réserve, of course…