Gift to the planet as champagne house scraps elaborate packaging

A DESIRE from companies to go green could spell the end of luxury wrapping on some of the world’s most desirable champagne after one producer said it would scrap high-end boxes in favour of a more sustainable alternative.

The Maison Ruinart champagne house, founded in 1729, is to introduce a sleek, white, recyclable wood-pulp skin that will reduce the carbon footprint of every bottle by 60 per cent.

The new casing is nine times lighter than the traditional box, weighing just 1.4oz (40g) compared with the 12.7oz (360g) of the formal cardboard gift box.

However, Moët Hennessy, which owns Ruinart, has yet to decide whether its other champagne labels, such as Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon and Veuve Clicquot, will join the “green” offensive.

Though sparkling wine made in Britain cannot be called champagne, the radical “second skin” for Maison Ruinart was designed in the Lake District.

It is made from wood pulp from ecocertified forests in Norway and Finland and took two years to develop. Other champagne and spirits brands have expressed an interest in the design, according to James Cropper Colourform, the Kendal-based papermaker behind the packaging.

A Maison Ruinart spokesman said the casing was another first for the brand, which is the oldest established champagne house and lays claim to the first rosé champagne, produced in 1764. Frédéric Dufour, the Ruinart president, said the innovation of “the second skin crystallises our commitment to sustainability”.

Under a previous “green” initiative, the brand had shrunk the size of the gift box by 1.7oz (50g), saving 200 tons of paper, and banned plastic elements from the packaging.

The white, textured casing was inspired by the chalk wine cellars of Crayères in Reims, at the heart of the Champagne region, and designed with a nod to the traditional way champagne and wine is served in restaurants, wrapped in white linen.

A crucial element of the design was to protect the clear-glass bottles from “light strike”, which can taint the taste. It is a particular problem in the hospitality industry, where the finest champagne bottles are often stored in brightly lit cabinets.

The casing can withstand a few hours in an ice bucket. However, a James Cropper spokesman said that, in the home, it was advisable to remove the sleeve before chilling in the fridge.

Asked why Maison Ruinart did not just do away with all packaging around bottles, the spokesman added: “It is part of the allure of a luxury product.”

Ruinart will launch the packaging at Selfridges next month on its Brut Rosé NV and Blanc de Blancs, priced £69.99.