Champagne Bruno Paillard bottles in the dark

Champagne Bruno Paillard is shaking up packaging of its non-vintage portfolio, which includes bottling its grand cru blanc de blancs in clear glass, a radical departure from the traditional green.

Champagne Bruno Paillard believes the move to clear glass will allow consumers to see the pale gold colour of the wine and thus emphasise its Chardonnay origins, serving as an indicator to its style.

Bottles of the grand cru will be filled in total darkness to ensure that the wine is protected from light, with bottles only subjected to daylight once they have been covered in a protective, cellulose sheet, which remains in place until serving.

Labels on the house’s core range of three non-vintage Champagnes, including La Première Cuvée, La Première Cuvée Rosé and Le Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru, are also set to get an overhaul to “better reflect the roots of the maison”.

The legal label requirements have been moved to the back to highlight the name of the maison and the cuvée, which is now the only text on the front. The term “Extra Brut” will now also be stated on the back label to signify its low dosage, which is five g/l for the Blanc de Blancs and six g/l for the Brut and Rosé, in keeping with Paillard’s preference for drier styles.

Bruno Paillard said of the changes: “These aesthetic changes are one more step on this path, bringing more clarity to the understanding of our wines. The move to clear glass for our Blanc de Blancs gives a further sense of the Champagne inside before the bottle is even opened.”

Its new packaging will be unveiled by Champagne Bruno Paillard at Vinexpo later this month, and will be available to specialist merchants and the on-trade in the UK via Bibendum PLB.