What’s happening in the market?
Fittingly, the most traded wine by value since last Friday was Dom Pérignon 2013, which along with Rare 2008 contributed to lifting Champagne’s trade share to 11.7%.
Bordeaux accounted for 49.2% of trade in the last five days, buoyed by trades of Le Pin 2005 and three vintages of Pétrus, as well as First Growths Châteaux Lafite and Mouton Rothschild.
Burgundy lagged behind with 16.8% of trade by value despite two wines from Domaine de la Romanée Conti trading.
Today’s deep-dive: 2013 Champagnes – Separating the wheat from the chaff
Coming off the back of the critically acclaimed 2008 and 2012 vintages, hopes for 2013 were originally not high in Champagne. Early releases from Louis Roederer, Pol Roger and Dom Pérignon positioned it as a productive vintage, but perhaps one of quantity over quality. However, more recent wines from Taittinger and Salon have rectified the picture slightly, putting 2013 on the map of great years for vintage Champagnes.
Most major Champagne houses have chosen to release 2013 grandes cuvées, with the exception of Krug, which may still do so in a few years, and Bollinger which released B13 and the second vintage of La Côte aux Enfants, but not La Grande Année.
Louis Roederer Cristal 2013 kicked off the releases back in April 2021. It was scored 96 points by The Wine Advocate and 97+ by Antonio Galloni (Vinous), slightly lower than the 2012 vintage (97+ from The Wine Advocate, 98 from Antonio Galloni). Since its release, Cristal 2013 has seen its Market Price increase by 46.3%, with a peak in summer 2022 when demand (and consequently, prices) for Champagne boomed.
Louis Roederer Cristal 2013 trades on Liv-ex
View all Cristal 2013 opportunities here.
In March 2022, Pol Roger released the 2013 Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill at £1,920 per case (£960 per 6×75). With 97 points from Antonio Galloni, it is rated higher than the 2012 (96 points) and is currently available at a Market Price of £1,680 per case, a 4.9% discount to the previous vintage.
View all Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill opportunities here.
Perhaps the headline 2013 Champagne is Dom Pérignon, which was released in January 2023 and has topped the most-traded wines by value and volume since the start of the year. It has done so, however, all while seeing a decline in its Market Price, implying there is strong appetite from buyers, but at the right price.
At the time of release, the 2013 was the most affordable of the last ten vintages of Dom Pérignon. In terms of scores, it received 95+ points from The Wine Advocate and 94 from Antonio Galloni, lower than the 2012 vintage. However, its relatively low price means it is an appealing option for buyers, and the high demand presents an opportunity for sellers with stock to shift ahead of Christmas.
Dom Pérignon 2013 trades on Liv-ex
View all Dom Pérignon 2013 opportunities here.
Some 2013 Champagnes paint a different picture of the vintage, however, one of outstanding quality as well as quantity. The two most recent releases, Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 2013 and Salon Le Mesnil-sur-Oger Grand Cru 2013, are among the highest-rated releases from these maisons in the past decade.
Comtes 2013 was scored 98 points by Antonio Galloni, equaling the 2008 and 2006 vintages. What’s more, the wine has been released at the price implied by Liv-ex’s Fair Value methodology, meaning it offers value compared to its peers.
View all Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 2013 opportunities here.
Salon 2013 received a score of 99 points from Antonio Galloni and called it ‘the most powerful, dense young Salon’ he had ever tasted. As such, it is rated higher than the 2012 vintage, but remains below the 100-point 2008. That said, the 2013 is also more widely available and considerably cheaper than the 2008, making it an appealing opportunity for buyers able to source it.
View all Salon Le Mesnil-sur-Oger Grand Cru 2013 opportunities here.
Last but certainly not least, following the release of Philipponnat Clos des Goisses 2014 during La Place’s Autumn Releases, it’s worth highlighting its higher-rated 2013 vintage. Antonio Galloni scored it 98 points, equaling the 2008 Clos des Goisses.
View all Philipponnat Clos des Goisses 2013 opportunities here.
Prior to the releases from Taittinger and Salon, the 2013 vintage in Champagne was mostly characterised by high volume at relatively affordable price points. While these high-profile wines are not enough to raise 2013 to the same highs as 2008 and 2012, they are a good reminder of the quality to be found in the vintage.
There are currently 83 LIVE bids and offers for 2013 Champagnes on Liv-ex. Log in to the exchange to view them and trade.
In case you missed it
Here’s what we’ve been reading:
- Liv-ex: Technical Analysis of the Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 (Silver+ members only)
- The drinks business: Why there’s optimism following difficult harvest in Italy
- Financial Times: UK grocery inflation falls for seventh month in a row
Liv-ex analysis is drawn from the world’s most comprehensive database of fine wine prices. The data reflects the real time activity of Liv-ex’s 620+ merchant members from across the globe. Together they represent the largest pool of liquidity in the world – currently £100m of bids and offers across 20,000 wines.
