A select band continues to dominate this category, where brand recognition is the all-important factor.

Champagne is a category in which brand reputation has a key role. Its expense clearly plays a part in consumers' brand loyalty - creating a reluctance to experiment with lesser-known brands as they might in the craft-spun worlds of beer and gin, for example.

LVMH has appointed new chief executive officers for its champagne brands Moet & Chandon and Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin.