‘Pop Bottles’: Jay Z Buys $300-Per-Bottle Champagne Brand Armand De Brignac

Jay Z name-drops champagne brands about as often as he references Basquiat, but the rap star turned mogul will likely only be shouting one brand of bubbly going forward. The Jigga Man recently snapped up a champagne maker of his very own, and it will cost you a pretty penny if you want to pop bottles with Hov.

This week brought news that Jay Z had diversified his portfolio even more with the purchase of the Armand de Brignac champagne brand. If you’ve never heard of Jay Z’s newest purchase, you may have heard of one of their products. As the Los Angeles Times notes, it’s the same company that produces the Ace of Spades champagne that Jay Z shows off in his 2006 video for “Show Me What You Got.”

Jay Z loves to tout “black excellence, opulence, decadence,” and the Armand de Brignac purchase is no different. Those bottles of Ace of Spades usually go for $300 per cork popped, though ABC News points out that the more frugal among us can get some Jay Z bubbly for just $250. If you’re thinking of splurging, though, you can pick up a giant “Midas” bottle, which costs six figures.

We’d expect nothing short of decadence from Jay Z, but why are Armand de Brignac bottles so pricey? Part of it has to do with the way the bottles are made. Each bottle is hand-crafted at the Cattier family house, established in 1763. There’s no word on whether or not Jay Z will keep the family brand operating as it previously has, but it seems likely that Jay wouldn’t do anything to damage the value of his new investment.

Jay Z has been known for his love of pricey champagne for years now, and the rapper was previously a big fan of the Cristal brand, as were many other rappers. Cristal, though, lost Jay Z and other rappers as supporters in 2006 when the company’s boss made some comments that were interpreted as racist.

“[It’s] unwelcome attention,” Cristal’s managing director Frederic Rouzaud told the Economist of Jay Z’s continual touting of the brand. “What can we do? We can’t forbid people from buying it. I’m sure Dom Perignon or Krug would be delighted to have their business.”

Jay Z quickly followed up those remarks by removing the champagne from his 40/40 Club and issuing a statement.

“It has come to my attention,” Jay Z said at the time, “that the managing director of Cristal, Frederic Rouzaud, views the ‘hip-hop culture’ as ‘unwelcome attention.’ I view his comments as racist and will no longer support any of his products through any of my various brands, including The 40/40 Club nor in my personal life.”

And now, with the Ace of Spades purchase, Jay Z won’t have to tout any brand that’s not his own.

[Lead image via RapDose]