Grey Goose vodka
Encyclopedia
Grey Goose is a Bacardi
-owned brand of premium priced vodka
produced in France. It is distilled in France
from French wheat
. In 2004, Sidney Frank sold the brand to Bacardi
for $2.2 billion. Among French vodkas, Grey Goose has some competitors, as the French vodkas Nuage, Idol, and Ice Kube are also now on the market. These vodkas are sold mostly in North America, and are marketed as premium brands. Grey Goose vodka is bottled with a replaceable cork
rather than a screw-top cap.
market in 1997 by Sidney Frank
, a self-made billionaire. After the advent of the premium vodka market by rival Polish vodka brand Belvedere vodka in 1996, his concept was to create a high quality vodka
for Americans. He took the idea from the notion of French
manufacturing having an inherent link with high perceived quality, quickly dispatching a team to Europe
. Grey Goose was created as a result.
Distilled and bottled in France, Grey Goose is made from French winter wheat
from in and around Picardy, an area north of Paris
. It is distilled
in a column still
and the high proof spirit is then blended with spring water that has been filtered through limestone
in the Cognac region of France.
Grey Goose was sold in the largest ever single brand sale for $2 billion, in cash, to Bacardi
. This sale made Frank an estimated profit of $1.6 billion. Incidentally, Frank was also behind the success of Jägermeister
before launching Grey Goose. Before his death on January 10, 2006 at the age of 86, his final projects included a premium tequila
named Corazon and Crunk!!! energy drink
, a joint venture with hip hop
entrepreneur Lil' Jon.
The success of Grey Goose in the marketplace has been credited as inspiring introduction of other more expensive "premium" vodkas.
Bacardi
Bacardi is a family-controlled spirits company, best known as a producer of rums, including Bacardi Superior and Bacardi 151. The company sells in excess of 200 million bottles per year in nearly 100 countries...
-owned brand of premium priced vodka
Vodka
Vodka , is a distilled beverage. It is composed primarily of water and ethanol with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is made by the distillation of fermented substances such as grains, potatoes, or sometimes fruits....
produced in France. It is distilled in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
from French wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
. In 2004, Sidney Frank sold the brand to Bacardi
Bacardi
Bacardi is a family-controlled spirits company, best known as a producer of rums, including Bacardi Superior and Bacardi 151. The company sells in excess of 200 million bottles per year in nearly 100 countries...
for $2.2 billion. Among French vodkas, Grey Goose has some competitors, as the French vodkas Nuage, Idol, and Ice Kube are also now on the market. These vodkas are sold mostly in North America, and are marketed as premium brands. Grey Goose vodka is bottled with a replaceable cork
Cork (material)
Cork is an impermeable, buoyant material, a prime-subset of bark tissue that is harvested for commercial use primarily from Quercus suber , which is endemic to southwest Europe and northwest Africa...
rather than a screw-top cap.
Production and history
Grey Goose was designed for the AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
market in 1997 by Sidney Frank
Sidney Frank
Sidney E. Frank was an American businessman who became a billionaire through his promotion of Grey Goose vodka and Jägermeister.-Early life, family, education:...
, a self-made billionaire. After the advent of the premium vodka market by rival Polish vodka brand Belvedere vodka in 1996, his concept was to create a high quality vodka
Vodka
Vodka , is a distilled beverage. It is composed primarily of water and ethanol with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is made by the distillation of fermented substances such as grains, potatoes, or sometimes fruits....
for Americans. He took the idea from the notion of French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
manufacturing having an inherent link with high perceived quality, quickly dispatching a team to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Grey Goose was created as a result.
Distilled and bottled in France, Grey Goose is made from French winter wheat
Winter wheat
Winter wheat is a type of wheat that is planted from September to December in the Northern Hemisphere. Winter wheat sprouts before freezing occurs, then becomes dormant until the soil warms in the spring. Winter wheat needs a few weeks of cold before being able to flower, however persistent snow...
from in and around Picardy, an area north of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. It is distilled
Distillation
Distillation is a method of separating mixtures based on differences in volatilities of components in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction....
in a column still
Column still
A column still, also called a continuous still, patent still or Coffey still, is a variety of still consisting of two columns invented in 1826 by Robert Stein, a Clackmannanshire distiller, and it was first used at the Cameron Bridge Grain Distillery in Fife, Scotland. The design was enhanced and...
and the high proof spirit is then blended with spring water that has been filtered through limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
in the Cognac region of France.
Grey Goose was sold in the largest ever single brand sale for $2 billion, in cash, to Bacardi
Bacardi
Bacardi is a family-controlled spirits company, best known as a producer of rums, including Bacardi Superior and Bacardi 151. The company sells in excess of 200 million bottles per year in nearly 100 countries...
. This sale made Frank an estimated profit of $1.6 billion. Incidentally, Frank was also behind the success of Jägermeister
Jägermeister
Jägermeister is a German 70-proof digestif made with 56 different herbs and spices. It is the flagship product of Mast-Jägermeister SE, headquartered in Wolfenbüttel, south of Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, Germany.- History :...
before launching Grey Goose. Before his death on January 10, 2006 at the age of 86, his final projects included a premium tequila
Tequila
Tequila is a spirit made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, northwest of Guadalajara, and in the highlands of the western Mexican state of Jalisco....
named Corazon and Crunk!!! energy drink
Energy drink
Energy drinks are beverages whose producers advertise that they "boost energy." These advertisements usually do not emphasize energy derived from the sugar and caffeine they contain but rather increased energy release due to a variety of stimulants and vitamins....
, a joint venture with hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
entrepreneur Lil' Jon.
The success of Grey Goose in the marketplace has been credited as inspiring introduction of other more expensive "premium" vodkas.
External links
- Grey Goose website
- profile on DISTILUS
- The Cocktail Creationist magazine, January 10, 2005.
- New York Times: A Humble Old Label Ices Its Rivals January 26, 2005. (Relevant to topic on superpremium vodka market.)