Notorious Beam Team

From NotCot:


"Classic Italian yacht maker, Riva, (yes, the ones that you can stick a Lamborghini engine in) teams up with Veuve Clicquot in their latest beautiful design collaboration, that makes me dream of living the dolce vita lifestyle, and has me desperately yearning to hop a plane back to Italy to relax on Lago di Como.

They have launched La Grande Dame by Riva Collection which includes three products in mahogany, chrome and leather - the Cruise Collection, Cruiser Bag, and ice bucket ~ the Cruise Collection contains 4 bottles of La Grande Dame 98, 2 magnums of La Grande Dame 88, 6 champagne flutes Riedel and 6 water tumblers, plates, table mats and cutlery ~ the Cruiser Bag contains a bottle of La Grande Dame 98 and two champagne flutes. Full photo spread to help you fantasize about the Riva/Veuve Clicquot lifestyle on the next page… as well as some background on the incredible story of Riva… and i found some amazing original sketches of the various Riva boats over the last 40 years worth taking a peek at!

p.s.
no, i’m not condoning drinking and boating ~ have a designated driver?

And on a side note ~ for those of you unfamiliar with Riva… to be honest it was vaguely familiar with it, and upon a call to my dad, i’ve suddenly spent the last few hours flashing back to the 70’s hearing his tales about Riva’s in their prime, family friend, Gino Gervasoni, who was partner to Carlo Riva since 1950 and took over in 1971, how the owner of some of the hottest Singapore nightclubs now used to be the main Riva rep for all of asia… so, surprisingly, i must say, one of the awesome perks to running this site, is getting a chance to find out more of the secrets in my parent’s pasts!

As for Riva - the story dates back to 1842 Lago di Como (see the full story at the bottom of the post) ~ It stays in the family generation after generation ~ they start mass producing in the 50’s as waterskiiing begins to take off ~ and it really becomes seen as the Ferrarri/Lamborghini of the sea in the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s when they capture the attention of the film world (yes that’s Brigitte Bardot in ‘68 in the bottom left of the top image) ~ in the 70’s they introduce Fiberglass production ~ in 1969 Carlo Riva sells the yard to the American company Whittaker ~ and Gino Gervasoni, his partner since 1950 takes his place ~ in 1991, Rolls Royce takes control of the company and Gervasoni (married to Carlo Riva’s sister) steps down, ending the family legacy with the company ~ and in 2000 Italian Yacht powerhouse, Ferretti, takes over and continues to run Riva today. Going through the history in pictures is a fascinating quick study on the history and evolution of the luxury/speed boat industry, and the images and stories of the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s seem like such a romantic, nostalgic, fun era to have missed out on!







1) Cruise Collection: a “made to measure” piece and costs $80,000 - comes with 4 bottles of La Grande Dame 98, 2 magnums of La Grande Dame 88, 6 champagne flutes Riedel and 6 water tumblers, plates, table mats and cutlery.


2) Cruiser Bag: Limited Edition piece (only 300 pieces available) - includes a bottle of La Grande Dame 98 and two champagne flutes. Available from July and costs $425

From a design standpoint, i can’t not share some of the gorgeous sketches of Riva’s boats as well!



I love this “myth” of Riva:

The Riva myth starts on the banks of Lake Como, in Laglio, in 1842. One Spring day a fisherman arrives from Sarnico, a village on Lake Iseo in the province of Bergamo. Stunned by how the young Pietro Riva, born in Laglio on 12 March 1822, is repairing his boat that has been damaged by a load of bricks, the visitor proposes he go to Sarnico to repair two boats that have been damaged by the Oglio River bursting its banks and throwing them against the rocks on the river bed. Covering the seventy miles that separate the two lakes marks Pietro’s emancipation and the birth of Riva’s history.

Pietro’s skill is noticed once again in a wooden hut on the River Oglio and his ability as carpenter finds an environment willing to offer him boats both to repair and build. The first commission he receives is for a “fishing boat and Comacine type rowing boat”, probably a streamline “inglesina” for one, two and three rowers. The young Riva is able to set himself up and, ten years later, marry Lucrezia Taroni. They have five children: Angelo, Francesco, Ernesto, Erminia and Luigi.

Ernesto is sent to Laglio to learn the trade and on returning to Sarnico joins his father as a skilled carpenter. He senses engines are the future and proposes they build larger models. A new yard is needed, built on the other side of the bridge over the River Oglio: it is the so-called “tesone”, due to the particular type of roof. Business increases rapidly.

In 1881 Ernesto Riva marries Carolina Malighetti, with whom he has six children: Francesco, Angelo, Serafino, Mauro, Anna and Pierina. In the meantime Ernesto is commissioned to make the first motorboat. Success encourages him to build one of his own. He proposes the first tourist trips on the lake with this boat that he calls Sarnico. In particular the trip to Montisola, the largest lake-island in Europe, includes a visit to the shipyard at lunchtime. Mrs. Riva’s kitchen turns into a restaurant that honours the local gastronomic tradition and livens up holidays in particular."

Another great example of Veuve Cliquot's PR/Blogging design programme. As ever a very well matched partnership that adds to their premium image and gets Veuve talked about.