seafood. But you can also contrast it, using it as a
foil against bigger foods, like, yes, barbecue."
Binny's has a strong focus on staff training to
help customers better understand and select
sparkling wines. In addition to staffers regularly
recommending bubblies as food pairings it also
dedicates certain employees to event and wedding
planning. The key, says Jeffirs, is to have a wide
range of sparklers to fit every need and budget.
"W
French Fizz
Two views of the sparkling wine section at one of the
stores in the Chicago-area chain, Binny's Beverage
Depot. Director of wine sales Doug Jeffirs says that
the chain regularly recommends food pairings for
sparkling wines and dedicates certain employees to
event and wedding planning.
hat champagne lacks is an affordable entry level for consumers.
For someone new to sparkling
wine, $20 to $30 as a starting point is tough to
take," remarks Jeffirs. "If they start with a prosecco, we know from past trends that they might
move up the ladder."
And champagne isn't necessarily where everyone ends up. It may be the most famous of French
sparklers, but it's certainly not the only one.
Binny's ran a promotion throughout June highlighting crémant d'Alsace that included discounts,
Twitter tastings and Facebook outreach. The hope
is that those who discovered the traditional
Alsatian bubbly for the first time in June will keep
coming back for more.
Because the summer sparklers category is so
broad, there is a lot of crossover potential. Binny's
is now seeing its sixth year of strong growth in still
dry rosés. So, staffers are emboldened to introduce
customers to sparkling rosés. Moscato is still
booming as a category; these gently effervescent,
Bubbly Pointers
• Don't hide the sparkling in the summertime. Pull bottles to create an eye-catching
display.
• Highlight sparkling rosé along with still
rosés. People already associate rosé with the
warmer months, so bubbles can be a welcome
suggestion.
• Keep a few bottles of bubbly with still
wines of the same region or varietal.
Consumers who rarely frequent the bubbly
section will get to see them this way.
• Sparkling wine is food friendly.
Recommend it as a pairing wine for everything
from sticky, spicy barbecue to chilled seafood.
• Going on a picnic? Bubblies make great
picnic wines: there is usually no corkscrew
required.
• Sparkling wine cocktails are hot in the
summertime. Top your mimosa, bellini or
French 75 with prosecco, cava or — god
forbid! — champagne.
• Dedicate one or more of your staff members to event planning, including weddings.
Your customers will thank you.
32 • Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • July/August 2013
