Pernod Ricard is set to knock Cristal, Krug and Dom Perignon off their perches as the world's most expensive luxury fizz.
The French wines and spirits group announced today that it would launch a Champagne that would make those marques – retailing at a mere £180-£220 per bottle – look like cheap Cava.
'It will cost around €1,000 (£670) a bottle. We won't do many cases,' Chairman Patrick Ricard told the company's annual shareholders meeting today.
Ricard said very little about the Champagne beyond hinting that it would be launched under the Belle Epoque brand, referring to Pernod subsidiary Perrier-Jouet's top cuvee – a snip at around £70 a bottle.
He was responding to a shareholder's question about what was Pernod's strategy in the face of larger luxury groups such as LVMH, the world's leading Champagne house which owns Moet et Chandon, Krug, and Dom Perignon.
Pernod, which is also launching a new brandy costing £130 a bottle, is actively trying to take its brands upmarket.
'It is a fact that consumers all over the world want to identify with brands that represent themselves. This has to be brands with quality which are exclusive,' managing director Pierre Pringuet said. 'It's the same for fashion, cars, and spirits.'
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Pernod is my alternative drink to wine - ask PERNOD to keep their drink going. Julie Newman
It will probably be called 'Jacobs Creek Grande Époques Reserve-XO blend.' W.Bos
How pathetic! Does abject greed know no bounds, or is it only limited by corporate ego? Hope it goes flat. Barry & Carol Bassin, Oranjestad, Aruba
Price is not the same as quality. I think that centuries of know-how are priceless, and PR must take this into account. Good luck. Jose-Mario Serra, Brazil
This kind of ultra-luxury brand has nothing to do with the quality of the product. It is all about brand marketing for these sorts of products. The shame is that there are many delightful grower-producer champagnes of equal or higher quality at a small fraction of these stratospheric prices. But that is also the joy of it, for those of us who buy our champagne to drink, instead of to show off. Keith Wollenberg, San Francisco, USA
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Pernod is my alternative drink to wine - ask PERNOD to keep their drink going. Julie Newman
