Above, we have taken the 2005 vintage of wines in the Liv-ex Bordeaux 500 and compared current and peak prices. For the wines whose prices rocketed during the bull market, the price drop is substantial: the 2005 Second Wines have dropped 39% on average. Their peak prices were arguably unsustainable: Carruades de Lafite 2005 reached £3,900 in June 2011 from a London release price of £410, and perhaps staggering is that its 46% drop from peak still leaves it five times the price of its opening. Not all wines have fared so well. As we have noted previously, Cheval Blanc 2005 can be purchased today for the same as its London release price of nearly eight years ago.
The 2005 “Super Seconds” have fallen 20% on average since peak. Leoville Las Cases 2005, with 98 points from Robert Parker and 100 from Wine Spectator, now has a market price of £1,800 – just £120 above its release price and 25% below peak. While the market’s decline is bad news for those who purchased their 2005s when the market was running hot, for those who didn’t there would seem to be plenty of opportunity.
