Cava brand Codorniu has just launched its latest global advertising campaign with a 30-second advert carrying the tagline, “We are not Champagne, we are Codorniu”. This new campaign is adressing a very interesting point: what Cordoniu is not as opposed to what Codorniu is. By opposing philosophies and points of views, they finally draw the conclusion: “We are not Champagne, we are Codorniu”. Don’t call me Champagne! After the recent Champagne vs Prosecco duel, now comes Cava…
First, let’s introduce this Cava producer. Codorníu is one of the oldest and most established wine-making companies in Spain, dating back to 1551. It was Josep Raventós who, following a visit to France in the 1870s during which he learned the “Traditional” method for sparkling wine production, created sparkling wine using native grapes of the Penedes region. Today the company is one of the leading producers of traditional method sparkling wine worldwide. Around 50 million bottles of cava are housed in a 30km network of underground cellars.
Why do they launch this advertising campaign now? Because there is a momentum for sparkling wines worldwide. Not only is it the right time to build a strong international brand but it is also the appropriate period to prepare the next move upmarket. On a longer term, selling the “Dom Perignon” of Codorniu would make sense in a strategy focused on added value. Codorniu already made the first step and built a brand new ‘micro-winery’ in which they carry out tests, innovate and seek out excellence in winemaking.
Italian sparkling wine brands and now a spanish brand show they have strong objectives and want to move upmarket. Who’s next? USA? As Jon Bonne puts it today in his new brilliant West Coast’s Top 100 Report: “Even our best sparkling wines are being recast. We’re well past the notion of replicating Champagne on these shores. Instead, a handful of wineries is looking beyond industrial-scale efforts and making wines with a specificity of place and purity of flavor.”
Should we be surprised by these new marketing & communication initiatives? Definitely not. Lastly, the first classification of bubbly to include Champagne and sparkling wines from around the world has crowned Franciacorta the “Best Non-Dosage in the World” (“non-dosage” or “non-dosé” bubbly is currently the most fashionable category, as proved by Roederer bringing out a “Brut Nature” with Starck). Meanwhile, a Cava picked up the honours in the “World Champion Greatest Value Sparkling Wine” category. Maybe not surprised but It is time for Champagne to take action. Communication experts must define clear strategies to respond to the situation.
As a conclusion, I would suggest to read my recent post “Champagne is suffering a major identity crisis: is it serious Doctor?”. Personally, I am not too worried about Champagne because it has always known what to do when the time comes. When I see all the initiatives taken in the past, I tell myself Champagne is still a source of innovation and always will be. That is why (and how) it always pulls through. But, in a much more competitive market, it will take a lot of great and innovative ideas in the future to give Champagne a fresh competitive edge and especially halt the downward spiral of prices that we have seen over recent years.
(*Since 2003, Guillaume Jourdan has been advising more than 200 prestigious wine estates for their international communication strategy incl. Chapoutier, Hugel, Dr Loosen, Famille Perrin, Cos d’Estournel, Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie’s Miraval…Write to Guillaume info@vitabella.fr)
