Stella Artois to launch pear cider

Stella Artois is adding a pear-flavoured variant to its cider brand called Cidre.

The new product, called Cidre Pear, will be launched in the UK in June this year, just over a year since the Belgian beer brand unveiled its first cider.

According to brand owners Anheuser-Busch InBev, Stella Artois Cidre has become “the second largest premium apple cider in the off trade”, with retail value sales of £50m and over 39 million pints sold.

The company is not only hoping to capitalise on the success of its Cidre label with the new product, but also tap into the fast-growing pear-flavoured cider segment.

According to Nielsen, the value of the pear cider segment grew by 17% in 2011.

“We are absolutely delighted with the success of Stella Artois Cidre and it is our intention to continue to innovate to give choice to our consumers, and growth opportunities for our customers,” said James Watson, European marketing director for Stella Artois.

The new range extension will be supported by a marketing campaign in the UK during the summer.

Stella Artois Cidre Pear will be sold in 568ml bottles and six-bottle cases and will be available in multiple grocers, independents and wholesale convenience stores from June as well as on-trade outlets from mid-May.

Anheuser-Busch InBev won’t supply an RRP for Cidre Pear but one can assume it will be priced at the same level as Cidre, which is currently selling for £9 for a six-bottle case in Tesco (or £1.50 per 568ml bottle).