Champagne spa extravagance
By Stacy James
Inspired by Duval-Leroy, the resort’s signature French champagne, The St. Regis Bali team has worked diligently to create an exclusive, 150-minute Luxurious Champagne Treatment utilising the antioxidant super-food benefits of the mighty grape. Luckily for us, champagne is made from the wonder fruit, and the liquid itself not only tastes delicious, but is also well known amongst wellness aficionados to rejuvenate and hydrate our skin. Of course, not every five-star hotel could rationalise indulging guests in a half-day, champagne-filled spa experience, but with a professional team led by perfectionist Harald Wiesmann, the resort’s chief sommelier, second best could never and will never do. Hand-picked by Wiesmann, who proudly serves the respected brand throughout the resort’s restaurant and lounge venues, including its legendary Wine Spectator award-winning restaurant, Kayuputi, Duval-Leroy is one of Champagne’s finest vineyards with a history that dates back to 1859.
In perfect alignment with the Astor family’s original concept for the St. Regis brand, to exceed guest expectations while providing a relaxed, private club-like atmosphere, Duval-Leroy continues its own family-run heritage with Carol Duval-Leroy as president of the company. An anomaly amongst the historically male-dominated industry, Ms. Duval-Leroy says that over the past fifteen years her key priority has been to raise the quality of her products to the highest level possible. “The mark of our success in this endeavor shows in the number of top awards and medals that Duval-Leroy obtains regularly at national and international competitions,” she says.
We have no doubt that when Ms. Duval-Leroy takes her next holiday escape to Bali, she will surely approve of the Luxurious Champagne Treatment that St. Regis has designed to make the most of a product she lovingly helps to produce. With sophisticated interiors one would expect from St. Regis, Remède Spa tickles your fancy with a wonderland of lyrical whimsy influenced by this single line in a beloved Indian poem: ‘The butterfly takes my soul to the moon.’ Designed by renowned spa designer, Bill Bensley, he and his team at the Bali and Bangkok-based Bensley Design Studios have created a magical, nature-inspired space that easily beckons an all day experience. Indoor treatment suites feature backlit walls dancing with shimmering butterflies, royal blue butterflies are delicately suspended from within a romantic dome overhead, and state-of-the-art treatment tables are draped in linens printed with butterfly motifs in cocoa and sky-blue. Outside, you’ll find Remède Spa’s famous architectural masterpiece, the butterfly wall, even more glorious after sunset when surrounded by the innovative lighting created by Bensley and his team. In a design world consumed with modern minimalism, little touches including feminine, butterfly-shaped mirrors above each treatment suite are a sight for sore eyes.
Your champagne experience begins with a 30-minute relaxation session in the spa’s renowned Aqua Vitale saltwater pools. A sensory delight for massage enthusiasts, water jet stations are spaced generously apart, each targeting specific body parts to create an all-over body massage experience while you are suspended in the soothing, warm water. From the ankles to the tip-top of your head, each water jet is positioned perfectly with medium to strong pressure, as relaxing as it is invigorating and most certainly the perfect way to begin the spa indulgence of a lifetime.
Now it’s time to experience a treatment fit for Cleopatra, the first champion of vinotherapy. Beginning with a refreshing flower foot bath within the gently lit double treatment suite, your therapist applies a grape-infused foot scrub and polishes each heel with a round pumice stone, creating a mini-pedicure sensation. Lying face up on the treatment table, pure Duval-Leroy Champagne is applied directly to each body part, from the tops of the feet all the way up to your shoulders. Infusing the skin with a potent cocktail of natural fruit acids, polyphenols, antioxidants and tartaric acid, champagne is ideal for exfoliation and for improving the appearance of aging and sun damage. While the fruit acids work their magic, your therapist gently applies an aromatic body scrub containing pure grape seed extract. Known as one of the most potent free radical fighting ingredients in the wellness industry, grape seeds contain powerful antioxidants that actually bond with and strengthen collagen, the fibrous protein that works with elastin to keep skin firm. Active compounds called proanthocyanidins protect skin from future damage, helping to prevent wrinkles and promote greater skin elasticity.
Now, back to the champagne. By this time, your skin is deliciously emollient, the perfect pre-bikini treatment to kick off the summer season. In a small, ceramic bowl filled with pure, white clay, a generous splash of Duval-Leroy is added to create a luscious body mask. Your pores are perfectly prepped to soak in the clay’s high mineral content, drawing impurities from the skin without removing natural oils while simultaneously exfoliating, cleansing and stimulating circulation. The pure, white clay and champagne mixture is absolutely ideal for all skin types. Your therapist wraps you in a cocoon of butterfly linens and thermal sheets, creating a delicious sanctuary as she applies a hair mask with a soothing scalp massage.
With the body absolutely radiant from all of this exterior indulgence, it’s time to feed your inner goddess. In the private, walled garden outside, an oversized marble bathtub filled with hot water and floating tropical flowers beckons. As the body mask slowly dissolves from your skin, the pop of a champagne bottle is audible from within the suite. A sparkling flute of champagne is brought to your bath side, giving you ample opportunity to reflect upon the summer ahead. Cleopatra would be proud.
(www.stregisbali.com)
