- The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 fell 1.1% in July, a sharper decline than in June.
- The Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 declined by 0.7%, a milder fall than in June, closing at 383.96.
- The Champagne 50 was the best-performing index in July, rising 0.9%.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100, the industry leading benchmark, fell 1.1% in July, a sharper decline than recorded in June (0.4%) and May (0.6%).
Looking at the wider market, the Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 (which tracks 1,000 wines from across the world) fell by 0.7% to close at 383.96. The Bordeaux Legends 40 rose for the second consecutive month (0.2% following 0.3% in June), and the Champagne 50 rose by 0.4%. While all other sub-indices fell, some did so less steeply than in June: the Burgundy 150 (-0.8% vs -2.4%), the Rest of the World 60 (-0.7% vs -1.1%) and the California 50 (-0.7% vs -0.8%).
Meanwhile, the Rhône 100 saw the sharpest decline (-1.6%), followed by the Bordeaux 500 (-1.2%), compared to a 0.2% rise and 0.5% fall respectively in June.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 (which tracks the movement of the First Growths and is updated daily) fell by 1.6%, slightly worse than last month’s decline of 1.5%.
Though expected as we enter the summer holiday period, July saw a slight dip in both traded value and volume.
The Liv-ex 100 continues to decline
The Liv-ex 100 has fallen for the fourth month in a row. The index’s slight uptick in March 2024 marked the only month-on-month rise in the past 12 months. Year-to-date, it is down 4.4%, but remains up 11.1% over a five-year period.
In July, of the 100 component wines, 30 appreciated, 6 remained flat, and 64 depreciated. While Promontory 2018 topped the list of risers in the Liv-ex 100 in May and June, its stablemate, Harlan 2018, came out on top in July. The wine’s Mid Price recorded an increase of 16.0%.
Clos des Papes’ Châteauneuf du Pape Rouge 2020 came in second, up 8.7%, followed by Pol Roger’s Sir Winston Churchill, recording a 6.7% rise. The latter was released in early 2023 at £1,950 per 12×75, and last traded at £1,458 – a 25% price decrease.
Champagne 50 rises
The Champagne 50 rose by 0.4% in July — a substantial difference from its 2.8% decline in June. Of the index’s 50 components, 25 increased in price, one remained flat and the other 24 fell. While we have reported on recent Champagne releases falling flat, some older vintages of the Grand Marques are recording month-on-month price increases.
Dom Pérignon 2006 topped the chart, with its Mid Price rising by 9.5%. It last traded at £1,650, a 79.3% increase on its original release price of £920.
Liv-ex trades of Dom Pérignon 2006
Thanks to its impressive critical response, the 2008 vintage of Dom Pérignon has proved significantly more popular. It last traded at £1,864 per 12×75, 50.3% above its initial release price. Because the wine trades so frequently, its pricing is less volatile than less renowned vintages – the market remains consistently tight.
The relative price volatility of vintages such as the 2006, 2009 and 2010 does, however, present market participants with an opportunity. With less trading activity, buyers and sellers alike have an increased chance of transacting at their chosen price rather than that set by the collective market.
Liv-ex trades of Dom Pérignon 2008
What are Liv-ex indices?
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 Index is the industry leading benchmark. It represents the price movement of 100 of the most sought-after fine wines on the world’s most active and liquid marketplace from France, Italy, USA, Australia and Spain. Stretching back over 20 years, the Liv-ex 100 is quoted on Bloomberg and Reuters screens.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 Index is the broadest measure of the market. It represents the price movement of 1,000 of the most sought-after fine wines on the world’s most active and liquid marketplace. Stretching back over 20 years, the Liv-ex 1000 is comprised of seven sub-indices from across the world: the Bordeaux 500, the Bordeaux Legends 40, the Burgundy 150, the Champagne 50, the Rhône 100, the Italy 100 and the Rest of the World 60.
All Liv-ex indices are calculated using our Mid Price; the mid-point between the highest live bid and lowest live offer on the market. These are the firm commitments to buy and sell at that price; transactional data rather than list prices. It represents the actual trading activity of 620+ of the world’s leading fine wine merchants. Because Liv-ex doesn’t itself trade, this data is truly independent and reliable.
Changes to the Indices this month
This month, several changes were made to the indices, to keep them up to date as current and relevant reflections of trading activity on the exchange. In the Bordeaux 500, the 2011 vintage was swapped out for the 2021 vintage for all wines.
In the Left-Bank 200 (a sub-index of the Bordeaux 500), Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion and Château Rauzan-Ségla were added, while Château Gruaud Larose and Château Pape Clément were removed.
In the Right-Bank 100 (also a sub-index of the Bordeaux 500), Château Canon and Château Figeac were added, while Château Clinet and Clos Fourtet were removed. In 2022, Château Figeac was promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classé A Status.
The Liv-ex Fine Wine Investables Index, which tracks the price performance of around 200 of Bordeaux’s finest wines over the past 25 years, underwent more substantial changes. All wines with a Neal Martin (Vinous) rating of 94 points or less were removed, as were all pre-1996 vintages. In their place, the 2018, 2019 and 2020 vintages of component wines were added, as long as they had received a Neal Martin score of 98 points or higher. Three new brands were also added – Château L’Église-Clinet 2019, Château Figeac 2019 and the 2019 and 2020 vintages of Château Lafleur.
The 1995 and 1999 vintages have been removed from the Bordeaux Legends 40. In the place of these 10 components, with the exception of Château La Mission Haut-Brion 2009 which received 96 points from Neal Martin, only the 2009 and 2010 vintages of component wines receiving Robert Parker (The Wine Advocate) scores of 100 points and Neal Martin Scores of 97 points or higher were added. Château Ducru-Beaucaillou 2009 has also been added to the index.
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