Chandon takes on the apéritif category with launch of RTD Spritz

Chandon is set to take on the apéritif category with Garden Spritz, an RTD that combines sparkling wine with a spiced aromatic orange liqueur.

This summer sees the launch of an exciting spritz into the UK market from Moët Hennessy’s sparkling wine brand, Chandon. Chandon Garden Spritz – a sparkling ready-to-drink spritz that combines the company’s flagship sparkling Brut from Argentina with a spiced aromatic orange liqueur – is the brand’s first venture into the apéritif category, but it aims to offer the consumer a new experience in the burgeoning spritz market.

“We wanted a very different take on the spritz, something fresh and delicate that uses natural ingredients, with less sugar,” Arnaud de Saignes, international director of Chandon, explains.

It is, according to Sibylle Scherer, president and CEO of Chandon, Moët Hennessy “the perfect tipple that evokes those transporting moments of discovery and community among friends in the sun”.

The “hero” at the forefront of Chandon Garden Spritz is the brand’s sparkling Brut, which has been perfectly balanced with an aromatic spiced orange liqueur to give a consistent ready-to-serve apéritif.

“You just need to open it, add ice cubes, a wedge of orange, and a touch of rosemary,” de Saignes says. “It’s very distinct, very elegant and balanced and provides a new take on the wine spritz that will further develop the market.”

Developing the liqueur was a laborious process that took four years, in which 64 recipes were developed before the team decided on the perfect combination. Around 4,000 tonnes of certified-organic oranges from family-run farms in Argentina are harvested by hand, thinly peeled, with half slowly cooked before being pressure macerated, while the other half is freshly macerated. Herbs and spices such as cardamom, pepper, gentian, and chamomile are all macerated separately to craft the liqueur.

Sustainability was an important consideration – once peeled, the oranges are pressed, with the juice given to local schools and the skins and pulp mulched for compost that is used in areas around the winery. “It is a virtual circle that enables us to take from nature and to give back,” de Saignes says.

Overall, the international spritz market has nearly tripled in the past 20 years, but while sparkling wine may be the core ingredient, de Saignes admits it is rare to see a branded sparkling wine product.

“The idea was to bring something different to this market, capitalising on the trend of cocktails made with bubbles,” he says. “Although Chandon has been in the UK for a number of years, it is a way to launch the brand across Europe, and write a new chapter around innovation.”

Marketing campaign

Chandon Garden Spritz has already been launched in the US, Australia, and some key European markets, but the UK is the main focus for 2022, along with markets in the Pacific and Southern Europe. It will be supported by a marketing campaign, which will target festivals and partners in the on- and off-trade, including Ocado, Fenwick Majestic and Whole Foods Market, as well as engaging with lifestyle media and local creatives.

“The UK is a very large market for quality products. It has an appreciation for bubbles and for apéritifs; outdoor drinks on the terrace or at festivals during the summer are very popular, so it has great potential,” de Saignes explains. “We want to develop the category, and the position of sparkling wine as a core ingredient, and make Chandon Garden Spritz a global icon.”

Chandon Garden Spritz RRP £20 per 70cl bottle.