What’s happened to Bordeaux?
Back in 2010, Bordeaux dominated the fine wine market, accounting for over 95% of the total value traded. In some weeks, the First Growths alone represented more than half of the market. However, this is no longer the case and Bordeaux’s average trade share has fallen every year since 2010, as the chart above shows.
Although Bordeaux is still the largest player, its influence has declined significantly. Year to date, the region accounts for just 60.7% of value, the lowest annualised share in Liv-ex records. This is a sharp drop on last year’s share of 68.3%.
There are a number of reasons for Bordeaux’s decline over the past few years. From 2011, unsustainably high prices for top wines and decreased interest from China contributed towards Bordeaux’s decline. More recently, the fine wine market has broadened. Back in December, we noted that an increasing number of different wines are now trading actively in the secondary market. This has pushed Bordeaux’s share back.
Burgundy pushes forward
Instead, traders have shifted their gaze to other regions. For example, Burgundy’s trade share has risen from 12.5% in 2017, to 14.7% in 2018 so far.
As our recent report highlighted, the Burgundy market now has a very broad base, which is growing each year. In 2017, 1,573 unique wines (LWIN11s) from Burgundy traded, a 539% increase on the number that traded in 2010. As the market has broadened it has also deepened and Burgundy’s total exposure – the total value of bids and offers on the market – has grown from £3million to £9million in three years, with rapid growth occurring in 2017.
To download our Burgundy report, click here.
Champagne, Italy and Rhone follow suit
Burgundy is not the only region to gain trade share this year. Champagne, Italy and the Rhone have also followed suit. Of the three regions, Champagne’s trade share has risen the most, from 6% in 2017 to 7.6% so far this year. Italy, from 6% to 7.3% and the Rhone from 2% to 2.9%.
The ‘Rest of the World’ category is the only region other than Bordeaux to fall. Its trade share dropped from 5% in 2017 to 4.4% in 2018.
The year, however, is not over yet. Tune back in January to see the final numbers for 2018.
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