It was an active week for the fine wine trade as new releases dropped, trade policies were updated, and a record number of distinct wines were traded.
On Tuesday morning, Château Latour 2013 was released in the UK; its second release since leaving the En Primeur system with the 2011 vintage. The wine was offered at around £4,200 per 12×75, equivalent to the 2012 release last May. Released alongside the Grand Vin was Les Forts de Latour 2015 at £1,819 per 12×75. Activity surrounds both new releases on the market.
On Wednesday evening, the trade welcomed the news that the UK Government had moved back the introduction of VI-1 forms for importing wines from the European Union to January 2022.
Then on Thursday at midday the number of distinct wines traded in March hit 1,250, surpassing November 2020, previously the biggest month. That number jumped to 2,284 when vintages traded in March were added.
Bordeaux’s trade share by value fell to a near record low for the month, to 27.8% of trade. Burgundy had a near identical share at 27.7%, the closest Burgundy has ever come to surpassing Bordeaux in weekly trade share. It was helped along by demand for grands crus.
Italy was not far behind with a 20.8% share, a large jump from the previous week. The Rhône also outperformed for the fourth consecutive month, as multiple vintages of Domaine de La Janasse from the Southern Rhône and E. Guigal from the Northern Rhone saw activity.
Champagne, the USA, and others all held near their February share.
Domaine Ponsot Clos de la Roche Grand Cru Cuvée Vielles Vignes 2017 was the top traded wine of the week. William Kelley, writing for the Wine Advocate, awarded the wine 96 points and described it as, “a brilliant wine”.
Dom Perignon 2010 was the top-traded Champagne of the week. The 2010 vintage has garnered a significant amount of support so far in 2021. The 2010 vintage is the second most-traded vintage by both value and volume – trailing the 2008 vintage for value and non-vintage Champagne for volume.
Two Super Tuscans also topped the list this week, Ornellaia 2018 and Sassicaia 2013. We recently saw the release of Tignanello 2018, while the new vintage or Ornellaia is expected early next week.
Liv-ex will be analysing and publishing analyses in the run up to and throughout the upcoming 2020 en primeur campaign. For instant email alerts on the campaign, subscribe below:
