Collet Brut Champagne - 750ml

Product Information

And finally, exacerbating the situation is something that’s become a more recent issue for the region, and particularly the cooperatives, and that is a shift from a shortage of grapes, to, potentially, an oversupply, as annual production in recent harvests has exceeded current demand. However, one insider has made it clear that the reason for the break up is connected with past over-spending, rather than any issue with incomes during the present downturn in Champagne consumption. Furthermore, producers have a contractual obligation to buy grapes at a pre-agreed price, meaning that even during our current coronavirus-affected times, producers won’t be paying a reduced fee for their grape supply. (Any reported grape price reduction tends to represent just the small amount sold on the free market). But there’s a bigger problem for Champagne makers, whether they are growers who bottle under their own label, cooperatives who make their own brands, or houses who buy grapes to produce globally distributed marques. This means that COGEVI, due to the split, could lose a customer in Alliance Champagne at a time when it might be seeing sliding sales of wine and Champagne to other parties, such as supermarkets, as well as seeing a falling demand for grapes from the négociants.

Mid-lemon colour, it has a complex nose of raspberries, golden delicious apples and William pears with marked blossom notes, brioche and marmite. The fruit notes are developed, but with some underlying fresh zesty lemon. On the palate the mousse is powerful yet elegant, and the finish off dry and slightly chalky. (Siobhan Turner MW) Lanson, Le Green Label Organic

Champagne Collet, Extra Brut Premier Cru NV

What about the situation when viewed from Alliance’s perspective? Well, while COGEVI’s withdrawal represents a potential loss of 30% of the Alliance supply base, as it has been said to db, if Champagne volume sales are down by 20% in 2020, then the amount needed to make up for COGEVI’s departure is not so great at just 10% in volume terms. Jacquart & Associés Distribution (JAD) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alliance Champagne which was set up by the three remaining co-ops both to handle the distribution and marketing of the Jacquart brand, wine made under the Champagne Ritz licence and all the BoB production for COVAMA, COGEVI and Union Auboise. So why have these senior figures left COGEVI? While this is speculation, it appears that COGEVI may have spent too much money, with db sources citing a number of major investments, with a couple of capital-intensive ones mentioned in particular.

As db has been assured, this separation will have no immediate effect on Alliance Champagne, which has, as its flagship brand, Jacquart, as well as a further label, Montaudon – which tends to be used for selling large volumes of fizz in the major multiple retailers. With the heads of the group apparently deciding not to provide such assistance, it appears that COGEVI has had to withdraw from Alliance, a split that was agreed to by the parent group on 10 September, and finalised earlier this week, marking the end of a 23-year union. Furthermore, db has been led to believe that COGEVI managing director, Olivier Charriaud, has already left the organisation, along with the financial director. As noted above, cooperatives, which are owned by their grower members, have a number of income streams, from supplying grapes and wine to other houses, to bottling Champagne for their grower-members, or making a finished product for selling under their own brand – in COGEVI’s case, Collet.They actually own an area of vineyard far greater than this, but their total crop is shared between three major destinations: local co-ops, contracts with the négociants and the CVC. The CVC in turn divides its volume of roughly 22m bottles between the Nicolas Feuillatte brand and Buyers’ Own Brand (BoB) business.