An icon turns 90: the success story of the piccolo

How Henkell Piccolo shaped the sparkling wine market

For 90 years, Henkell Piccolo has stood for stylish sparkling wine enjoyment in a practical size. First introduced in 1935 as a 200 ml sparkling wine bottle, the ‘small’ Henkell Trocken became synonymous with convenient sparkling wine enjoyment and marked a milestone in sparkling wine culture. Today, the Piccolo remains an indispensable classic in the trade and continues to generate strong purchasing impulses even after 90 years. In the German domestic market, Piccolo sales increased by 38% in 2024 which significantly increases the share of Piccolo bottles compared to the Henkell brand’s total sales in Germany. And also, internationally Piccolo is a success story: for Henkell, Austria is the second best-selling Piccolo market, Australia in third place with growth of 11% and in the Henkell Frexienet ranking also the market with the highest proportion of Piccolo bottles in the world compared to standard bottles.

In 1935, Karl Henkell, grandson of company founder Adam Henkell, took a bold step: he launched his branded sparkling wine Henkell Trocken in a convenient 200 ml bottle for the first time. A revolutionary idea at the time! Inspired by the Italian word ‘piccolo’ for ‘small’, Henkell gave his invention the Germanised name ‘Pikkolo’ and had the name protected under trademark law. In the spirit of internationalisation, Piccolo has now reverted to the Italian spelling. What was introduced as a new bottle size in the mid-1930s quickly became the symbol of a new culture of enjoyment. At the beginning of the reconstruction phase after 1945, Karl Henkell specifically promoted the sale of the small bottle – and thus set a trend: at a time when the financial resources of many households were limited, the Piccolo represented an affordable alternative. For a long time, opening a whole bottle of sparkling wine was reserved for the highest and most festive occasions. With its compact bottle size – perfect for two glasses of sparkling wine – the Piccolo made spontaneous enjoyment possible for all consumers.

The Piccolo was a bestseller during the economic miracle years of the 1950s and established itself as a pioneer for special enjoyment in smaller quantities. In the 1960s, Piccolo alone accounted for around a third of Henkell’s total bottle sales. To this day, the Henkell Piccolo remains a firm favourite on the market and encourages spontaneous purchases.