Growing a fine wine collection can lead to more than wonderful and convivial tasting experiences. Investing in wine is also the opportunity to diversify your assets by growing a portfolio that is independent of the tribulations of bonds or the stock market. 

An alternative and tangible investment that, much like fine art, jewelry, or vintage luxury cars, can either be enjoyed or resold according to your preferences. 

A sound wine investment can:

Yield very high results. For instance, in 2003, a Laffite-Rothschild 1982 vintage was sold at auction for $490. 6 years later, the same bottle was sold for $2586, representing a 70% annual return. Much higher than your regular stock market. 

“Rise in value thanks to its rarity or popularity”: which can drive prices extremely high. The most expensive bottle ever sold, during an auction led by Sotheby’s, was a 1945 Romanée-Conti Grand Cru that was auctioned for 482 000 euros in 2018. An incredible sum for investments that can span several generations and that can become a true family heritage. 

Be a tangible opportunity: to honor years of craftsmanship and legacies of excellence, support historical Châteaux and estates, discover new rising stars of the vineyard and acquire bottles that will not only stand the test of time but actually get even better and rarer with age.  

Our Vintage Cellar team of experts is at your disposal to help you build the ideal portfolio for your needs and states. One that will stand the test of time and deliver high-yields returns.

Why is wine a good investment opportunity?

Fine wine becomes more qualitative, and more scarce, year after year. This is the fundamental principle that makes wine such a good long-term investment. The demand for the best estates far outweighs their available volumes and most of the wine is simply drunk after a time, creating a gap in the market for older vintages.

This gap can be extremely profitable for the keen-eyed or well-advised wine aficionado who has kept their collection in thermo-regulated cellars. According to Liv-Ex, fine wine investments have wielded a 10.6% annualized return over the past 15 years.

Beyond this eye-catching return, it has additional benefits such as:

• Resistance to inflation
• Low volatility
• Resistance to recession, as part of the luxury goods market
• Dissociation from traditional investment markets and their potential crisis (bonds, stock options…)
• Access to tangible goods
• Advantageous fiscality (depending on your country of residence)

Wine is also a low risk investment. With its steady growth and resilience from events that can make regular markets fluctuate (such as a global pandemic), wine is a commodity that stands the test of time. Our Vintage Cellar selection comprises of investment grade wines only, insuring that your collection is risk-free, sourced directly from the producers and not secondary markets.

All these characteristics place fine wine as a great investment to diversify your portfolio. Your wine collection, which you can start at any moment in your life, can transcend generations and become a family legacy.

What are the best wines to invest in?

Not every wine is worthy of the time – and money- needed to build your portfolio. Although they can be amazing to drink and enjoy with your peers, a great bottle needs more than an easy price-to-quality ratio to earn a place in your long-term cellar. Those who do have a couple of specific characteristics, such as:

• A high-end status among wine collectors: estates such as DRC, Opus One, Yquem… 
• A high aging potential: a good balance between acidity, tannins, and alcohols levels
• A high scarcity index: the rarer the wine or the vintage, the most coveted it will be
• A good quality vintage: even in the best estates, some vintages can be seen as “flawed” or not as popular as others. Amazing recent vintages are for example 2008 in the Champagne region, 2016 in Northern Rhone, 2015 in Burgundy… 
• A high ranking by renown wine critics: such as Robert Parker, the Wine Spectator, Best Sommeliers in the world…

All these can be adapted to your preferred taste and to the selected estate’s singularity. Wine is, after all, much like art in the sense that its value is linked to its maker and to the market’s speculation.

Some regions and specific appellations are also more widely recognized than others. French wine, for instance, often ranks amongst the best and most expensive wines on the planet, and Bordeaux Grand Cru or rare Burgundian appellations such as Clos de Vougeot or Charmes Chambertin are amongst the most sought-after bottles.

As with any tangible investment, the timing for the purchase of fine wines is extremely important. Some wines will be available at more interesting rates during the Bordeaux En-Primeurs Wines campaign, some vintages will gain value after the departure from the estate of their famous winemaker or before the acquisition of a Château by a new entity. Managing a fine wine portfolio means always using competitive intelligence to get insider knowledge of the specificities of the wine world and its many updates.

New trends for fine wines investments are also emerging, from organic or biodynamic estates to wines from countries such as New Zealand, South Africa, or Argentina.

Our advisors are here to help you build a portfolio according to your tastes, and with enough diversity to build value over time and manage risks.

How can I start my fine wine investment journey?

Our team of experts at Vintage Cellar is here to accompany you during all the stages of your fine wine journey.

• Selection of estates and wineries: VintageCellar grants you access to some of the most coveted wines from around the world. Prestigious and rare bottles whose allocations are only granted to a selected few. Our expert advisors will help you build your portfolio according to your taste, budget and wishes, selecting the ideal wines for your collection to grow in volume and value over time. 
• Storage of bottles: No need to invest in personnel and highly-expensive cellars for your investments. Your bottles are stored in our quality and temperature-controlled cellars in Beaune, Bordeaux and Geneva.
• Management of your portfolio: Our state-of-the-art technology and dedicated digital tools will help you keep a knowing eye on your collection in real time. 
• World-wide shipment: Ready to enjoy a part of your collection? Your bottles will be delivered to you in optimal conditions thanks to our dedicated network of specialized wine carriers. 

Transform your passion for fine wine into an investment opportunity for you and the generations to come with the help of our VintageCellar team and technology. Diversify your asset portfolio and create a tailor-made collection fitting your every need.

Start or Expand Your cellar.

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