The newly rebranded Champagne Charles Heidsieck has been launched in a travel retail exclusive with Aelia for a two-month period (starting 1 October) at Paris Charles de Gaulle, Paris Orly, Nice, Lyon and London City airports. The promotion is being supported by window displays and themed merchandising materials.
Founded in 1851, Champagne Charles Heidsieck underwent a complete brand repositioning and was relaunched at the Le Mans Classic in July this year. Its Brut Réserve and Rosé Réserve cuvees have been reblended and encased in elegant bottles and presented in gift boxes.
At the heart of this new project is Charles Heidsieck Brut Réserve, a cuvée recreated by cellar master Thierry Roset, with its blend of 40% reserve wines, aged on average for ten years, and 60% wines of the current year in equal proportions of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
The company’s founder, Charles-Camille Heidsieck, believed in the art of blending and extended maturation of the wines. “He decided to invest in chalk cellars to mature his wines rather than in vineyards. This decision gave him the freedom to choose the very best wines and to dedicate himself to his art,” the company said.
Today the wines are aged for 36 months, rather than the 15 months required by law, at 10 degrees in chalk cellars some 20 metres below ground. The result, says the brand, is “an elegant wine with golden hues and aromas of warm brioche and spices, the freshness of apricots, peaches and Mirabelle plums, along with the depth afforded by intense roasting and old rum, and a touch of vanilla”.
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Champagne Charles Heidsieck’s Brut Réserve and Rosé Réserve cuvees have been reblended and encased in elegant gift boxes |
In tribute to Chalk Cellar Number 9, which served as inspiration for its shape, the House Charles Heidsieck decided to name its new bottle shape “˜Crayère’. Monochromatic labels emphasise its contemporary, sophisticated lines.
The House chose contemporary Dutch illustrator Judith Van Den Hoek to design the new gift boxes.
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Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail Marketing and Business Development Director Matthew Hodges commented: “We are immensely proud to reveal the smart new presentation of Champagne Charles Heidsieck, a brand which is already very successful in many travel retail markets. The new designs are characteristically elegant and refined, as befits such an historic House, with a modern touch to appeal to today’s consumer. We anticipate a very favourable reaction when it is revealed in all its glory at the Aelia stores.”
Aelia Senior Buyer for Wines, Spirits and Champagne, Philippe Lanusse added: “We are extremely excited to launch exclusively in global travel retail the new Charles Heidsieck portfolio. Based on very close work with Rémy Cointreau on Charles Heidsieck Vintage bottles and several exclusive launches in the past, we have every expectation that this new project will be a complete success.
“The Brut Réserve and Rosé Réserve are both super quality in taste and appearance, and fit our luxurious and premium strategy perfectly,” he said.
