American Airlines Set To Serve Bollinger In Business Class: Fantastic

Intro

When I heard this news a couple of days ago, I almost spat my drink out. Why? Well, we have seen a competition between the US3 carriers in the past 9 months over champagne. In December, we saw United up the level by adding Laurent Perrier, while Delta forged a partnership with Tattinger.

American Airlines might be last on the scene here, but you know what they say: you serve the best for last.

The Details

American Airlines used to serve diabolical champagne onboard long-haul business class (sparkling wine at times), and I say this from someone who really likes the airline. However, going forward, American Airlines is now set to serve the cutting-edge Bollinger champagne, which is going to be a huge step up for the airline. The rollout for this is as follows:

• As of now, Flagship Lounges in Chicago, Dallas, and Miami will serve Bollinger.

• In a few weeks, this will be expanded to Philadelphia and Los Angeles (no mention of Greenwich at the moment).

• As of mid-October, all flights to and from Paris will serve Bollinger (I wonder why (sarcasm)).

• In the following months, more routes will be rolled out so those in Flagship First and Flagship Business (presumably transcon included) will receive Bollinger.

Combine this with their new 78P Business Class product, and American Airlines is making moves...

Considering Delta only offers the good stuff onboard, and not in their Delta One Lounges, American is upping this a level by providing Bollinger for passengers on the ground and in the skies, following United's suit.

Champagne Is Critical

Yes, this might be a champagne take (ha), but I wanted to provide my insight into why a premium champagne can make a difference when it comes to premium products. People will disagree with me, and that's fine, but the champagne that an airline offers resembles more than just champagne.

If you take a look at what champagnes are offered in business classes on airlines, they often resemble exactly where their ranking lies. Take a look at Qatar, and how they used to serve Alexandra Rose (delicious). Take a look at Emirates, which serves Dom P in F, and then you look at Thai, which serves LPGS... LPGS is perfectly respectable, and exactly where the TG F Product lies...

A little too much to ask AA to start serving Dom P and Caviar in F before it gets discontinued? 😉

You see where I'm going with this... So for American to up its champagne is more than just a contract; it is showcasing which way American is planning on going: premium. It will take a while, but I fully expect AA to once again compete in the markets they choose to compete in...

Final Thoughts

There is big news at American Airlines, as they are set to begin serving Bollinger in lounges and onboard. While the rollout might take a while for the entire route network, this resembles much more than just champagne; it is showing which path American Airlines is taking going forward. Considering that they have also added back pajamas recently to ULR flights, and have their new 78P, American once again might be an airline to consider on a long-haul business class flight. Plus, contrary to popular belief, I have found the staff on American to be nothing short of spectacular up in J this past year (12 long-haul flights).