I may be late in the game in writing about this news, but I have an excuse. I was pregnant all of last fall and moved 3,000 miles across the country. My mind was in many other places.
Earlier this winter, while getting acquainted to my new local wine shops here in Connecticut, I had a rather difficult time locating a favorite go-to value bubbly, Cristalino, and couldn’t figure out why. Did they just not carry this large production wine here in CT? I’ve seen it in every other state I have traveled to, why not here?
Then when unpacking some sample bottles sent to me last fall I found a bottle of bubbles and quickly chilled it. To my surprise it was that familiar producer, but instead of the normal label I was used to I noticed it had received quite the facelift.
This was due to a (in my opinion) ridiculous lawsuit brought about by the luxury Champagne producer, Louis Roederer Cristal, against the producer of the Spanish Cava, Cristalino. The issue ended last August after a four-year lawsuit over copyright infringement over the use of Cristalinos name. Apparently the name was too closely associated with Cristal’s and could easily confuse a consumer thinking the same company produced them. Personally I have never, ever, assumed any similarity between the two bubbly producers nor have I even known of anybody who has.
At any rate, the Spanish sparkling wine producer lost and was required to change their label (brand name, color, and font) and barred them from “using any mark, word, or name similar to the Cristalino name that is likely to cause confusion, mistake or deception with Roederer’s Cristal marks.”
After
So now this is what the label looks like, and sadly they have to have this ridiculous disclaimer on the front of the label: “JAUME SERRA CRISTALINO is not affiliated with, sponsored by, approved by, endorsed by, or in any way connected to Louis Roederer’s CRISTAL™ champagne or Louis Roederer.”
But the good news is this, it’s still the same fresh value priced bubbly that it always has been, just with a very different look.
This wine has always been a favorite go-to under $10 bubbly of mine, good for mimosas, summertime picnics, parties, or just any occasion where you want some bubbles without even breaking a ten spot. It is reliable, inexpensive, and widely available. Yes you should be able to find it everywhere, even Connecticut, where it actually is in many of the wine shops here, but I just never noticed because of the label change.
Now that we both know what label to look for when perusing the wine shop for this value bubbly there should be no more confusion. In Portland I used to pay as low as $5.99 for a bottle. I’ve seen it here in Connecticut for $7.99, and the suggested retail is $10. Now go get yourself a bottle for your Sunday morning mimosas!
Question: Have you seen the new label at your local shop? What do you think of the new design and the disclaimer on the front lf the label?
Sorry to hear about the lawsuit. Cava really is a superior product to Champagne and it is not surprising the atack from a French producer on a Spanish one.
Posted by: Wine Pleasures | April 04, 2011 at 12:40 PM