American Airlines ditches Champagne for Ferrari

American Airlines has become the latest airline to move away from Champagne with the company now serving Ferrari Trento DOC Italian fizz on first and business class areas.

According to Simply Flying, the move was put in place by the new Chief Executive Officer Robert Isom, who took office in April last year.

The airliner will now serve the Ferrari brut from Trentino, which is created with 100% Chardonnay grapes.

The wine, which has consistently received high scores at blind tastings, is described by Ferrari as “lively, bright straw yellow in colour with a fresh and intense bouquet on the nose, with a broad fruity note of ripe Golden Delicious apples, white flowers and a delicate scent of yeast” that is derived from 20 months of ageing in the bottle.

On flight forums, many were quick to note that the wine should not be seen as a downgrade from Champagne. Some suggested that it was a “shame” that American Airlines didn’t serve American Sprinkling Wine rather than Italian bubbles, which could have been acquired at a similar price point, such as Argyle and a number of other award-winning sparkling producers, many of whom are located in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

The news follows other airlines also ditching Champagne for other fizz, including Finnair who now serve Bernard-Massard Cuvée de l’Ecusson sparkling wine from Luxembourg on short-haul flights.