The New Piper-Heidsieck

A series of sweeping changes have been made at Piper-Heidsieck, ringing in a new era for the House for which Australians have become increasingly fond of. A new chef de cave and major re-brand may have positioned the House to appeal to a younger and savvy customer, but never at the expense of quality which is taken more seriously than ever before.

Words by Sara Underdown

As Champagne’s most distant market, with a comparatively small population, it would be easy to consider Australia insignificant in the landscape of worldwide sales for France’s finest bubbles. Not so, says Global Executive Director of Piper-Heidsieck, Benoit Collard, who ranks Australia as their number one priority across the globe.

Speaking over lunch at Piper-Heidsieck’s headquarters in Reims, Collard says he sees significant potential in recent market developments beyond the success of their entry-level Brut Non-Vintage for which they are best known.

“Last year’s shipments to Australia grew again. The market keeps on growing and you can see a trend. What I like in Australia is that you can see the market slowly growing from a purely non-vintage point of view to more rosé and vintages,” he says. “Still, it’s small and they will remain categories that not many people understand. But there’s a lot of opportunity because people are wanting to know more and try more.”

By this, Collard refers to the industry’s published export figures for 2017. In Australia, volume shipped has been largely forged by an insatiable appetite for non-vintage cuvées of which we pop some 22 bottles out of every 25. However, in 2017 this category dropped by 2.4%. Still, volume was up, by almost 16%, but most surprising was value – surging ahead by 23% on the year before. Figures, such as these, highlight Australia’s potential to diversify out of the non-vintage category and into others.

Benoit Collard, Global Executive Director, Piper-Heidsieck

Opportunities appear particularly strong for Piper-Heidsieck, even with brand recognition so heavily invested in their entry level non-vintage cuvée, often subject to price based promotion.

Whilst Collard does admit that price positioning doesn’t match what they’d like to see in the market (which is mostly driven by retailers), he believes it is no indicator of quality. He points to the string of awards the House has picked up in the last two decades.

“Our chef de cave has been awarded best winemaker eight times since 2002,” he says. “Our wine always meets expectations. There’s freshness, fruitiness, acidity, nice maturity. Part of it is the quality from the vineyards but another element is to keep raising our winemaking credentials. If you ask people what they think, they say ‘well, if I feel like a glass of champagne then when I drink Piper, I get what I expect’. People can trust it [our quality].”

A steady hand in the cellar has made Piper-Heidsieck one of the best and most reliable non-vintage champagnes on the market. Unfailingly bright, fruity and toasty, underscored by malic acidity, it is surprisingly complex and delicious. The classic blend accounts for no less than 100 crus taken from across the region, including some signature sites in the Côte des Bar where it borrows some weighty pinot noir character. Reserves, held in cool 300 – 500hL stainless steel tanks, comprise 15% – 20% of the final blend, keeping things pure and focused. And each bottle receives no less than four years on lees, up from two or three years previously. It is proof that quality and price do not always share a parallel relationship.

Piper-Heidsieck's Essentiel NV

Piper-Heidsieck’s other champagnes are also particularly good. Their vintages, most notably 2008, are beautifully structured; fresh, ripe and with a definitive mineral edge. They carry all the right structural components and complexity to age well. And then there is Essentiel, a relatively new wine in the portfolio already with a legion of devotees. A lower dosaged (6 g/L) version of Piper’s Brut Non-Vintage, Essentiel carries the brand’s hallmark characteristics of apples, pears and toast but is cleaner, drier and more precise. It also snagged a raft of awards following its launch in 2017.

“When you are a Champagne House, you need two legs to walk,” says Collard. “First is the wine excellence you need in order to be recognised - we are the most awarded House of the century. We keep investing in wine quality and keep pushing for more of it. Secondly, if you’re a Grandes Marques, people expect a personality. So, at the end of the day, it’s all about the wine and the character of the House.”

Piper has personality in spades. A sexy and youthful re-brand launched earlier last year has seen the House increase its presence within Australia but also globally. In recent years, Piper has secured prestigious partnerships with the Academy Awards and, in August, became the first champagne brand to partner with the Australian Open.

‘A dash of seduction’ now underscores everything from the House, designed to target the under 40s, highlighting moments of frivolity and sexual intrigue.

“Seduction is part of our heritage. It went all the way through the history of the House, from Marie-Antoinette to winning Marilyn Monroe’s heart,” says Collard referring to the House’s association with daring and beautiful women. “In the 90s we had a strong advertising campaign about seduction.”

Frivolity just so happens to pair nicely with the company’s intentions for Australia. Collard believes that Australians, whilst casual and fun, have evolved in the last 15 years to be more trend conscious, but still expect quality. Referring to the growth of Piper in Australia, he believes it hasbeen driven by a dynamic of quality and expectation coming together from a consumer point of view.

An increase in investment and renewed focus started three years ago in tandem with finding a new distributor to match the House’s evolving objectives. The search led the company to Oatley Fine Wine Merchants due to their on-premise footprint and network with independent retailers. They were also willing to develop activities and events to carry the brand’s personality into the market.

“[In Australia] we can see that champagne consumers are younger than in any other western country,” he says. “Piper consumers are young as well…we are on track and it matches. Young consumers ask: Why is this brand made for me? Piper offers exactly what consumers expect from a Champagne House and also in terms of style to match with the occasion and climate.”

Strategic pursuits resulted in sweeping changes across the House in 2018. Earlier this year, the company appointed Severine Frerson to the role of chef de cave, following 16 years in its winemaking team, to replace the esteemed, Regis Camus. However, in September it was announced that Frerson would depart for Perrier-Jouët as part of a succession plan to take over from current chef de cave, Hervé Deschamps.

Newly appointed chef de cave, Emilien Boutillat

The move could be seen as a blow for the company which was keen to promote a talented and capable woman to the top. However, her replacement - announced just weeks later - seems a solid fit. Émilien Boutillat is young, globally experienced and credentialed as an oenologist and agricultural engineer. A born and bred Champenois, Boutillat graduated from SupAgro Montpellier in France and spent time in Chile, New Zealand, the United States and South Africa before returning to France. For the past five years he has headed-up the winemaking team at Cattier’s Armand de Brignac.

Boutillat’s multi-national experience working across New World wines in diverse markets will most likely assist Piper-Heidsieck’s global reach in coming years. Where he will make his personal mark remains to be seen. However, with qualifications in agricultural engineering, it is not unreasonable to assume he will show some interest in raising the House’s environmental commitment to the vineyards it owns and those they source from.

Piper-Heidsieck's headquarters in Reims, France

Under former chef de cave, Regis Camus, the House attained double certification – the region’s VDC (Viticulture Durable en Champagne) and France’s HVE (Haute Valeur Environmentale). It was also under Camus that strong partnerships were forged with vignerons to “procure fruit which is almost luminous in its intensity”. To this end, the House offers growers technical support to assist with converting to sustainable practices – making Piper one of the few Houses to do so. Benoit Collard says that every year, the Piper-Heidsieck team try to be present in large cooperatives they partner with.

“Every time we ask for traceability in sustainable viticulture. The team has spent a lot of time working with our partners to make sure we get more grapes from sustainably farmed sites,” says Collard who says that he has seen a big change in people’s commitment to sustainable winemaking practices since joining the company.

Piper-Heidsieck's sexy new re-brand

As Piper-Heidsieck moves forward with Boutillat, Camus takes on the company’s prestige cuvée, Rare, as a standalone brand. Rare now enters an uncommon realm. The likes of Dom Pérignon, La Grande Dame, Cristal and Belle Époque, whilst belonging to their respective family brands sit in a stratosphere of separate brand recognition.

Rare’s branding also reflects the shift. Piper-Heidsieck’s logo has been removed from the front yet the bottle retains its distinguished gold metalwork to “have a bottle as outstanding as the wine inside”. Partnering with brand ambassadors – such as Ned Goodwin MW – allows the story of Rare to come to life so that customers can understand the wine inside and follow its journey.

“When people drink a Piper-Heidsieck it’s important they don’t think they’re drinking a ‘baby Rare’ and when people drink Rare we don’t want them to think they’re drinking a version of Piper- Heidsieck. And that’s why we need two different chefs de cave,” says Collard.

The marketing prowess of Rare’s brand separation highlights its point of difference in an aspirational world of prestige cuvées.

“Rare has a unique opportunity. It’s a wine of distinction with exceptional winemaking. People look for scarcity and, since 1976, we have made nine vintages of Rare; eight white and one rosé. Some of our competitors have done 38 vintages in this time…so we are truly exclusive,” he says.

Rare’s first ever rosé, made from the 2007 vintage, is a testament to the wine’s status amongst other prestige cuvées. The old adage that “you’re only as good as your competition” could not be truer here. The more challenging nature of 2007’s vintage resulted in delicacy, rather than concentration, missing out on the reputation afforded to others such as the lauded 2008 vintage. It was risky business for Rare’s first incarnation as a rosé, yet it was met with rave reviews across the industry including Wine Spectator, scoring it 95 points, and Wine Advocate, rating it 96.

Publications such as these join the assembly of influencers and industry critics who cannot deny the consistency and quality of winemaking coming from the House all the while remaining price competitive. It makes Piper-Heidsieck one to watch; especially in the context of its Australian story for which opportunities seem boundless.

Piper-Heidsieck's pristine cellars, Reims, France