Grey Poupon

Grey Poupon mustard jar

Grey Poupon is a brand of Dijon mustard in the U.S. The brand of Dijon-style mustard was originally owned and marketed in the U.S. by the Heublein Company and now owned and manufactured by Kraft Foods. Like other Dijon mustards, Grey Poupon contains a small amount of white wine. It is made with brown mustard seed grown in Canada. The wine used is produced in upstate New York under the supervision of a rabbi, to ensure that the product maintains its kosher status. Grey Poupon became a popular mustard in the late 1970s and 1980s as American tastes broadened from the conventional American yellow mustards.

History

Grey Poupon was first made in 1777 in Dijon, France, when Maurice Grey met his associate, Auguste Poupon, a partner in what had hitherto been the Maison de Grey.

In 1970, the directors of Grey Poupon and of another Dijon mustard firm, André Ricard, having earlier bought the popular Maille-label, formed a conglomerate called S.E.G.M.A. Maille. Soon afterwards, the new company decided to phase out the Grey Poupon label in France. It is still, however, manufactured for export, and a small amount continues to be produced for sale at the historic Maille-Grey-Poupon boutique on the Rue de la Liberté in Dijon itself. In 1946 the Heublein Company bought the American rights from the original company. Heublein was acquired by R. J. Reynolds in 1982, which merged with Nabisco in 1985 to form RJR Nabisco. In 1999, Kraft Foods acquired Nabisco, including the Grey Poupon brand.

Marketing

Heublein increased the visibility and name recognition of their mustard brand with a 1980s commercial in which a Rolls Royce pulls up alongside another Rolls Royce, and a passenger in one (played by Ian Richardson) asks a passenger in the other (Paul Eddington), "Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon?"

Famously quoted in Wayne's World 1992 movie by Paramount Pictures. Classic scene where Wayne parodies the Grey Poupon Dijon mustard advertisement slogan.

In 2007, Grey Poupon/Kraft company introduced three new specialty mustards: a coarse ground mustard, with whole mustard seeds; a spicy brown mustard, with diced yellow onions; and a honey mustard, with clover honey and spices.

See also

• Maille Dijon mustard a Dijon mustard made in France and sold in America

External links

• Malcolm Gladwell article describing the brand's rise
• YouTube video of the advertisement
• YouTube video of Waynes World parody advertisment