Rémy Martin is replacing its flagship Cognac brand with a fruitier version to attract new drinkers to a market that it warns is at risk of stagnating.

Rémy Martin VSOP will be replaced next month by Rémy Martin VSOP Mature Cask Finish, which has a different finishing process to create “enhanced fruity notes”.

The company said it was better suited to the taste profile of UK consumers.

The VSOP Cognac market had lost about a quarter of its regular consumers in the past five years, falling from 2.8 million drinkers in 2007 to 2.1 million last year [TGI], said marketing controller James Stocker.

“As a category, it is in danger of stagnating and we need to recruit. We believe the new product is more appealing to people who are not regular drinkers, but will also retain loyalists,” he said.

The product, which is designed exclusively for the European market, is sold in a clear bottle to highlight the Cognac’s copper-gold colour.

The relaunch will be backed by a marketing campaign, including on-pack neck collars and sampling activity set to kick off this month.

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