You hear lots of tales of amazing champagne bargains around these days, but how about the chance to buy Veuve Clicquot?
No, I don't mean a few bottles or even a few cases, but the entire company. Yes that"s the rumour doing the rounds in Champagne at the moment and it seems there may be more than a little truth in it.
I'm over here in Champagne for a few days in our home in the village of Verzy and I've been chatting with some of my neighbours, most of whom are champagne makers and who keep their ears to the ground.
To be fair this particular rumour has been around for a few months, but as with all large companies, there's a full time rumour-mill and often it's better to ignore the gossip until and unless something more positive comes to light.
However the fact that the name of Veuve Clicquot is still doing the rounds might well mean that there's more substance to this rumour.
It's true that Champagne is having a hard time at the moment. Sales are well down almost everywhere and just about every champagne maker, from the large to the small, is taking a good hard look at their business to find ways in which to generate more cash.
Sometimes in extreme times, extreme measures are needed and for Moët Hennessy ( that's the wines and spirits arm of the luxury goods group Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy) to consider selling Veuve Clicquot would certainly be drastic, but LVMH is nothing if not ruthless when it comes to business decisions and, if the numbers stack up, then they wouldn't hang on to Veuve Cliquot just for sentimental reasons.
Apparently other brands in the stable such as Mercier and Montaudon could well be on the block too which would mean that Moët Hennessy would hang on to Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon and Krug which presumably they regard as essential to the business in future.
This all makes sense: Moët & Chandon is the largest selling brand in the world, so that would stay, similarly Dom Pérignon is the world's best selling prestige champagne and is hugely profitable, whilst Krug has a unique image and style all of its own, which you can't really say about Veuve Clicquot, no matter how good a champagne it may be.
To add fuel to the rumour, the president of Veuve Clicquot for the past many years, Cécile Bonnefond, has left to join another company unrelated to champagne.
Interesting times indeed in Champagne.
More news as soon as I have it....
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