Inflation is difficult on everyone right now, however spare an idea for US Champagne drinkers.
© Shutterstock|When it comes to Champagne, it’s not simply bubbles that are rising.
Champagne is a byword for elegance, however it has also been a byword for consistency– at least until the previous couple of months.
Between July and November, the mean rate of a bottle of non-vintage Champagne in the United States has actually risen by $2.50 a bottle (4 percent), the second-largest dive over a four-month period in the previous ten years, as inflation digs its claws into everything.
In July, the average rate for non-vintage Champagne in the United States was $60 a bottle; by the end of November it was $62.50. While that does not seem like a substantial amount, it remains in historic terms, specifically offered the consistent nature of NV Champagne rates in the US.
Back in January 2013, the median market price in the United States for a bottle of NV Champagne was $49.99 and it held at that level for much of the year, before climbing to $52 in December of that year. There then followed an abrupt leap in January 2014, when it rose to $53.13 and it ended up that year at $54.17. There was another walking in January 2015, when the average rate struck $54.98, but then there were calmer seas.
The typical never rose above $55 for more than three years, till it struck $55.98 in May of 2018. Even that appeared to be a short-lived problem, as the cost supported once more and it was only in November 2019 that the median rate increased above $56, hitting $56.49.
By the following November, it had reached $58.99, but once again stayed steady– extremely so, in reality, staying in the $58-60 price variety till August of this year, when it finally struck $60.99. Since then the month-to-month increases have been steeper, to $61.98 in September, $61.99 in October and finally $62.48 in November. Overall, that’s a 20 percent boost in ten years, with 4 percent of that being available in the last three months.
While it’s not precisely putting NV Champagne out of reach of consumers, it is indicative of an increasing trend in rates, especially for Champagne. Overall, typical list prices for all Champagnes have increased by 8.8 percent over the same duration. On the other hand the trim mean price for NV Champagne (the mean, or typical price with the top and bottom 20 percent of rates removed to ravel any anomalies) has increased by 18.8 percent.
Provided the annual rate increases that appear to come every January, it might be worth investing in a case or two before New Year’s Eve.
To sign up with the discussion, discuss our social media channels.