Last year we wrote a blog highlighting the difference in price between the RP 100 point Montrose 2009 and the RP 99 point Montrose 2010 – what’s in a point?. We found that the 2010 traded £895 less than the “perfect” 2009 – a 38% discount for a single Parker point. This seemed hard to justify. The discount has been quietly narrowing since then – last week it was £580, a discount of 30% – but this has more to do with a decline in the price of the 2009 than a rise in the price of the 2010.
And then last Friday, BANG. Parker released updated scores on the back of a Montrose vertical tasting. While upgrading the 2003 from 97 to 99, he awarded Montrose 2010 a perfect 100 with the words “This is considered to be among the greatest vintages ever made in Montrose, right up with the 1929, 1945, 1947, 1959, 1961, 1989, 1990 and 2009.” The reaction was immediate. The wine traded from £1380 at the moment the upgrade was announced, to £1650 a few hours later. It is perhaps too early to say where the price will ultimately settle, but one thing is for certain – the 38% gap of a year ago has now been halved. So to a new question. What price parity?
