Ahead of the holidays, a lucky few saw Nicolas Archambault arrive at her home with her arms full of beautiful bottles. Few know it, but the dancer, choreographer and former juror of the Dieux de la danse has been pursuing a parallel career in the world of wine for several years. We met him over a drink at the Super Condiments café bar.
Posted yesterday at 11am
It was a contract in Paris to produce Saturday Night Fever that sparked a deep love for wine and its craftsmen in the Tony Manero interpreter. Nicolas Archambault was to spend six months in the City of Light. He finally settled there for three years.
“I made friends on purpose who worked in restaurants and wine shops. I wanted to use my stay to explore the world of gastronomy. The stolen glass [un des premiers bars à vin naturel parisiens, ouvert en 2000] was the closest wine shop to me. I was in contact with some very good wines, but without knowing it at the time. »
Do dance careers and the world of wine go together? “I don’t have a personality that gets easily addicted,” he replies. I tended to be stricter on myself than the other way around. From the dance I have the discipline to want to show up in the best possible shape. In Paris, I didn’t eat carbs during Saturday Night Fever on the days I worked. I treated myself to a croissant and wine on my day off. I really have a good awareness of what’s good and what’s not so good for me. Sometimes I don’t drink for a month. »
PHOTO PROVIDED OF THE PRODUCTION
Wynn Holmes (Stephanie Mangano) and Nico Archambault (Tony Manero) in the show Saturday Night Fever at the St-Denis Theater in 2018
First steps
When Nico and his wife Wynn Holmes later moved to Brooklyn, he became curious about wine despite having few local contacts in the industry. A friend of a friend who worked at an import agency advised her to get a job at a wine merchant to deepen her knowledge.
“I was a dance freelancer with irregular working hours. The owner of a shop near me, Smith & Vine, was a retired opera singer. He understood my life as an artist. He made me work one day a week. »
There were tastings the morning before the opening. I listened to the conversations, took notes and gradually I gained confidence and the courage to put my opinion about a wine into words.
Nicholas Archambault
“I ended up loving my job so much that the dance contract really had to tempt me to take it! adds Mr. Archambault.
Smith & Vine had been around for 17 years when Nico landed there. He was not a “natural” wine merchant, but only stocked quality wines that were rarely handled. “One thing led to another, I started giving my boss a taste of the wines I was drinking. He liked it and gave me a small budget to open a natural wine department. But there shouldn’t be any major deviations. If you sell a customer a bad bottle once, they might come back, but not twice. »
It’s that connection with the clientele that really appealed to the beast of the stage. “When the person comes back and says you told them exactly what wine they wanted, that’s very satisfying. Feedback, the conversation that develops over time. Mastering the language to talk about wine without being pedantic, snobbish, boring, intimidating… I like to communicate. I’ve often done it in dance. And I like talking less about myself than about a product that makes me vibrate. »
Nico eventually became Smith & Vine’s manager and didn’t deny the opportunity to leave for projects from time to time. Then the owner entrusted him with all the wine shopping for the boutique. “In total, I worked there for almost five years with breaks until 2022. For half a year I even did the shopping remotely. Now the stocks are 80% natural wine and I still send recommendations. »
continue learning
Since returning to Quebec, the artist has been searching for the best way to continue his love of signature wines. That’s why he dared to organize tastings in December, first for friends, then for complete strangers.
“It was really tailor-made. Someone gifted this to their friend who didn’t know much about wine but really liked macerated white wines. So I brought bottles of “orange wine” from Georgia, Friuli and Alsace. There was another guy whose favorite song is Fall in Love with Me, which is about drinking white wine in Berlin. We focused on German whites. »
Nicolas Archambault also likes to draw parallels between the world of music and that of artisanal wine. “Like hip-hop, natural wine has its own pioneers, OGs, rebels. It’s a counterculture. It’s a bit anarchic and I like that. »
The bottles that transformed Nico Archambault
La Souteronne by Hervé Souhaut (Romaneaux-Destezet domain)
PHOTO FROM IZGOOD WEBSITE
La Souteronne by Hervé Souhaut (Romaneaux-Destezet domain)
“I had never drunk a Gamay that came from the Rhône. The grape presented itself with great depth, but also with incredible energy,” Nico remembers. In fact, La Souteronne is a cuvée containing the fruit of old vines (60-80 years old) grown on granite soils. In Quebec, Hervé Souhaut wines are represented by the Rézin agency.
The wines of Aurélie and Arnaud Skilled in Alsace
PHOTO FROM SAQ WEBSITE
The wines of Aurélie and Arnaud Skilled in Alsace
“That evening we drank the Grand Cru Kaefferkopf, an aromatic blend of Gewürztraminer, Riesling and Pinot Gris, then we continued with the Phénix, a macerated Pinot Gris with a really vibrant copper-pink colour. Getting it out for the right person at the right time is like a magic trick! »
The wines of Geschick are represented by Le vin dans les voiles. Some cuvées are on private order. The Grand Cru Kaefferkopf 2017 is currently offered in the SAQ.
Milan Nestarec Podfuck
PHOTO FROM NESTAREC WEBSITE
Milan Nestarec Podfuck
“That was Nestarec’s podfuck 2016 or 2017 at the Vivant in Paris. My first encounter with a skin-macerated white wine. It’s been a long time, but I remember there was freshness and a lot of chewing. Plenty of aromatic fullness: blood orange, rose petals. It was deep, salty, tannic on the finish. And elegant! I am now analyzing my impressions from back then with what I have learned since then. But when I tried it, it was unlike anything I had ever experienced. »
Milan Nestarec’s wines are represented by the Ward and Associates agency and are mainly sold by private order. However, the Bel Cuvée is currently offered in the SAQ.