Jay-Z's Endorsement Boosts Upstart Bubbly
Filed under: Wine
Champagne sales overall are down but one brand has found that a little celebrity endorsement can go a long way. Armand de Brignac, the brand adopted by Jay-Z, has found great success thanks to the rapper's promotion. Jay-Z was a fan of Cristal until 2006 when Frederic Rouzaud, the managing director of Louis Roderer Cristal was quoted in The Economist calling the namechecking of the Cristal brand in hip-hop songs "unwelcome attention." Jay-Z found the remark racist. He called for a Cristal boycott and switched his allegiance to the new brand Armand de Brignac, part of Cattier Champagne. He featured the distinctive gold bottle with the Ace of Spades logo in his video to his single" Show Me What You Got" in 2006.Since then the brand has taken off, showing up in celebrity gift bags and becoming a new symbol of extravagant taste. The Independent reports that demand is so high that the winery could sell their 60,000-bottle production run several times over. The brand will reach its maximum production of 82,000 within three years. The Armand de Brignac Cuvees are priced from $300 per bottle and come in three varieties, Champagne Rose, Champagne Blanc de Blanc, and the Brut Gold. Luxist blogger Annie Scott sampled the Brut Gold earlier this year.
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