Cannes 2015: Festival’s official Champagne reveals its cinematic sparkle

You may not know it, but the Cannes Film Festival has an official Champagne, and it’s the same brand that’s also the official Champagne of the Academy Awards. Talk about a small world.

That label is Piper-Heidsieck. Though it was founded back in 1785, it’s not the oldest Champagne in the world, nor is it the biggest (that honor belongs to Moet). But it seems to be the one that cares the most about film. So much so that it’s taken a small space at a Cannes luxury hotel to spread the word to the uninitiated.

A bottle of Piper-Heidsieck first appeared in a film in, of all things, 1933’s Laurel & Hardy classic, “Sons of the Desert,” and the brand has been burnishing its movie business connections ever since, says company spokesperson Servane Magnan.

“Piper-Heidsieck was Marilyn Monroe’s favorite Champagne; she used to ask photographers to have it chilled on ice,” Magnan informs. “Everyone knows that she said she only wore Chanel No.5 to bed, but she also said ‘I wake up to a glass of Piper-Heidsieck.’” Who knew?

Ever vigilant about its film connection, P-H recently debuted a Grand Cinema label, which looks like a movie ticket, as well as a plastic ice bucket that’s shaped like a popcorn box. And as the official Cannes Champagne, it will supply some 8,500 bottles (retailing at $25 a pop) for festival events this year. That’s a lot of bubbles.

So why does Piper-Heidsieck do all this? “Champagne is a way to make life and emotions bigger,” explains Magnan, “and cinema is the art that does that, that makes things grander.” Which is a Cannes-type sentiment for sure.

Twitter: @kennethturan