Champagne giant Lanson is changing its established champagne production methods to incorporate certified organic methods in order to create a new organic “Green Label” product. The product will appeal to customers seeking an authentic champagne with a limited annual production, made from natural ingredients.

In its Q3 2016 survey, GlobalData found that one in three global consumers considered ‘organic’ claims made a product seem more authentic, and 60% of consumers reported that high-quality ingredients encouraged them to buy high-end products. Lanson will combine consumer trust of the brand and its heritage with the authenticity that organic certification confers. This will make a champagne that will be perceived as a higher-quality and sustainable premium product by consumers.

In 2010, the company purchased 13ha of ‘biodynamic’ Leclerc Briant land, and is using 8ha of it to cultivate a 2012 organic base wine for its Green Label product. The biodynamic trend is itself a variation on organic standards, meaning that the land is already certified for organic cultivation. The land is expected to yield 65-70,000 bottles annually at US$49.1 per bottle, which means that the limited production run will also make it rarer and likely more desirable for collectors.

The company stated in February 2017 that the champagne may become a vintage-dated product with future releases. As organic wine is still a niche product, Lanson’s commitment to organic production, as the ninth-largest champagne producer, is significant to the industry as a whole.

The 65–70,000-bottle annual production will still be outstripped by fellow organic producers Duval Leroy, Canard-Duchêne and Louis Roederer, but other conventional champagne producers are likely to follow suit to expand into the organic champagne market if the product is successful.

If Lanson decides to use the entire 13ha vineyard to produce certified organic Champagne, the Green Label would become the largest certified organic product in the region.