Champagne, don’t bid adieu to America!
As the American dollar has come to resemble a peso, a zloty or another currency that needs an infusion of iron (or gold), Champagne producers may be heading for other countries that can actually pay full price for the stuff. To wit, from today’s NYT, comes word that champagne shipments have fallen six percent this year, the first decline since 2001. But it gets worse. To the tape:
“The euro is rising and the dollar is falling, and soon we’ll have a real structural problem if the cost of the grape keeps increasing every year,†said Ghislain de Montgolfier, the departing president of the Champagne maker Bollinger and leader of the Union of Champagne Houses, a trade industry group.
Within the elite world of Champagne makers, there is discreet debate about shifting strategies in the United States, including possibly reducing volumes or shipping bottles to other countries with stronger currencies.
Boizel Chanoine Champagne, for example, closed its subsidiary in New York. “The U.S. today is not our priority,†Céline Voide of Boizel said. “We prefer to concentrate on Europe and Asia.â€
Don’t leave us! Take our fistful of dollars but don’t bid us farewell! Stay for the all brides and grooms out there and all those who need to christen boats. The rock stars, real estate moguls, and the hedge fund managers. And don’t forget us wine geeks. What are we going to put in our American flag encrusted champagne flutes? Key words for American bubbly enthusiasts in 2008 remain: prosecco, cremant d’alsace, cava, and sparkling wine.
Related: “Talking Champagne with Peter Liem of Wine & Spirits“
On June 14th, 2008 at 12:33 pm ,Delondra Williams wrote:
Forget the French, then. I’m rechristening Spanish Cava “Freedom Bubbles.” 😉
On June 16th, 2008 at 8:09 am ,Nancy wrote:
I’m not sure I believe the sky-is-falling reports about the weak dollar. Markets fluctuate and the dollar will be strong again. However, I shop in a local liquor store which gutted its French wine selections by 20-30% several years ago because, as the manager told me, “it doesn’t move.” Good French wines start at $35 a bottle and that’s just too much. A weak dollar? Or historically and deliberately overpriced wine?
On June 17th, 2008 at 10:43 am ,JDWebster wrote:
I Love Champagne,…… It’s a shame that I just can’t afford to drink it anymore. With as much good bubbly as there is from other regions of the world, I won’t shed too many tears. The big Champagne houses seem to have stopped selling wine anyway, all they sell now are “luxury goods”.
On June 24th, 2008 at 12:55 pm ,Alvin Lewis wrote:
I’ve gotta agree with JD Webster above. There are just too many excellent sparklers around to get too upset about the French focusing on selling the wares to China. When the $$ rebounds and they change their focus again much of that market will have found greener pastures. For example I was just sipping at some excellent local (NY) sparklers: Chateau Frank Blanc de Noirs and Blanc de Blancs, both vintage 2000 wines at less than $30. Now when was the last time you got a good vintage Champagne for under $30, even when the dollar was strong?
On July 20th, 2008 at 4:03 pm ,Champagne Enthusiast wrote:
Even without the effect of exchange rates, I guess that a lot of champagne lovers in Europe as well as the US may find it hard to afford to indulge in the luxury of champagne.
On July 25th, 2008 at 4:29 pm ,Annette S wrote:
Champagne is my drink, I love the stuff. I love Champagne from Spain…it is delicious at $7 to $10 a bottle. Schramberg’s Blanc de Blanc is also a favorite, too costly. I like to pay cash for bubbles and find it no problem bringing bubbly when celebrating.