Smeg’s Veuve Clicquot fridges say: What cost of living crisis?

Smeg has partnered with champagne brand Veuve Clicquot to launch a pair of limited edition ’50s-style fridges.

The partnership is in honour of Veuve Clicquot’s 250th birthday, and it’s the latest in a series of Smeg collaborations with brands including Disney, Dolce & Gabbana and Mini that have produced limited-edition fridges, as well as other co-branded kitchen appliances.

If, for example, you can afford to fork out £499, you can get your hands on a very attractive Smeg x Dolce & Gabbana toaster (available from John Lewis), with lovely designs based on traditional Sicilian art. It also toasts bread.

There’s a kettle, juicer and blender in the same series.

Two models of Clicquot fridge will be available, the FAB10 and the FAB28. “Any champagne connoisseur requires a mini fridge in their home bar”, says the Smeg press release, insanely, for all the world as though we aren’t in the middle of a cost of living crisis and looking forward to a recession for dessert.

If you’re struggling to decide between the two, the FAB10RDYVC5 is the one to buy if you only want to store a few bottles of fizz. It stands 97cm high and features Smeg’s iconic ’50s-style design in Veuve Clicquot yellow, with twin branding on the front. It has an ‘E’ energy efficiency rating and an annual energy consumption of 142 kWh/a. It has 105 litres of space in the refrigerator and and a 17-litre ice box. There are more details at Smeg.

The FAB28RDYVC5 is a larger fridge freezer in the same style.

Inside, it has 270 litres of storage, with 244 of that in the fridge and 26 in the small freezer compartment. It has a ‘D’ energy rating and an annual energy consumption of 130 kWh/a. Again, You can find out more details from Smeg.

There are some nice features inside: the LifePlus drawer to keep fruit and vegetables fresh and a MultiFlow system to keep the temperature inside the fridge consistent. However, you will probably be unsurprised to hear that this is fairly basic tech in relation to its breathtaking price.

The little FAB10 will cost £2,499.99 and the larger FAB28 £3,499.99. Both will go on sale in November 2022 from Smeg online and the brand’s flagship London shop in Piccadilly.

For a more budget-friendly way to enjoy the partnership – relatively speaking, I mean – you can buy a bottle of Veuve Clicquot in a limited edition Smeg fridge tin. It costs from £55 for the classic Brut and £65 for the Veuve Clicquot Rosé. In a nice detail, the Smeg champagne packaging is plastic-free, with the inner material made of sugar cane waste. 

For some fridge-buying options that won’t break the bank, have a look at our round-up of the best fridges and freezers we’ve tested.