Champagne Mercier Poster – Gaspar Camps – c1900 At the turn of the century To promote Champagne Mercier commissioned the Spanish artist Gasper Camps to produce an advertising poster. This beautiful image is what he came up with. It depicts a confident young woman wearing an off-the-shoulder cerise dress with a floral shawl. The elegantly dressed beauty is shown caressing her champagne glass in two hands to ensure she doesn’t spill a drop. One look at her glazed eyes and relaxed expression suggests the glass of bubbly in her hands isn’t the first one she’s had. The woman is portrayed sat at a table in the glamorous surrounding of a fine dining establishment. The other guests are painted in subtle tones that makes them fade them into the background giving the young woman added prominence. Although subdued there is plenty of movement going on in the background. The waiter on the left is serving guests at the table and another can be seen carrying a tray with a bottle on it as he exits the room. On the table she is sat at there is a bowl of fruit, with green and white grapes, integral to the manufacture of the famous champagne, strategically placed either side of the open bottle of bubbly. We especially love the couple on the right hand side of the picture who are just as captivated by the Mercier beauty as we are. The poster is bright and colourful and a great advert for the alcoholic beverage. It is thought that the model for the pose is his wife Cristina Dotti who was the artists wife and favorite model. The poster is popular among collectors of Food and Drink posters and especially Champagne poster collectors. Although not incredibly rare the poster still commands a sale price in excess of $1,500. Champagne Mercier Champagne Mercier was founded by Eugéne Mercier in Espernay in the Champagne-Ardennes region of France. The Mercier journey began in 1858, during the reign of Napoleon III, in the Second Empire, a period of thriving economic prosperity.Mercier set himself the challenge of making the wine of the era’s elites into champagne accessible to everyone without ever sacrificing quality. According to the Champagne Mercier website Eugène Mercier was a brilliant innovator and communication visionary. A man who always knew how to surprise and amaze the public… He launched numerous and original communication operations during the course of the 19th century: a filmed commercial with the Lumière brothers, the creation of unusual promotional items and grand wine tastings of Mercier champagnes at Universal Expositions. The website goes on to explain one adventure. “At the 1900 Universal Exposition in Paris Eugène Mercier created an original and attention-getting floating bar in an anchored hot air balloon. Attached to the foundation of the Vincennes Castle, the balloon took visitors to an altitude of 300 meters where they had the pleasure of a stunning panoramic view of Paris while enjoying a flute of Mercier. But destiny curiously intervened to transform the beautiful ascent into an unexpected adventure… The wind made off with the balloon and carried it to Epernay and well beyond, continuing its wild race all the way to Belgium.” The Mercier Champagne house continues to produce both vintage and non-vintage cuvée. Today it is owned by the group LVMH and is the number one selling brand of Champagne in the domestic French market. Other vintage wines, beers and spirits posters perfect for your home bar, office, kitchen… Since the end of the nineteenth century, thousands of alcohol-related posters have been published. We are constantly adding new ones to our website, but we’ve selected ten of our personal favourites from our Food & Drink poster collection for you to look at. Despite the numbering, these appear in no particular order. You know the old adage, you can’t choose between your babies, you love them all equally. Well, that’s how we feel about these vintage alcohol prints. Monastine Liqueur de l’Abbaye de St Gratien – Eugene Oge – 1892 Absinthe Robette – Privat-Livemont – 1896 Maurin Quina – Leonetto Cappiello Anis Infernal – Leonetto Cappiello – 1905 Porto Ramos-Pinto poster – Rene Vincent – 1920 Martini Torino – Marcello Dudovich 1930 Berger 45 Type Marseillais poster – Roland Ansieau – 1935 My Goodness My Guinness Lion Poster – Gilroy – 1937 De Venoge Champagne poster – Robert Falcucci – 1939 Kinagin, le Vermouth au Quina et au Gin – EP – 1941 We offer a fascinating collection of reproduction beers, wines & spirits vintage posters all guaranteed to make you merry without you touching a drop. If you’re looking for a poster to brighten up your drinks evenings then this poster will make your home bar complete. All our posters are available in shot glass size (small A5) to pitcher (large A1) sizes, which means there’s one available to quench your thirst, sorry, fit your space. The colours are vibrant and really stand out and they’re printed on a 300gsm (pretty thick) high-quality silk paper and they’re cheaper than a round of drinks at the bar! They make the perfect statement and will be sure to impress all your friends! Add a touch of Champagne chic to your home decor. Place your drinks poster order today. Cheers!
