- Terrible flooding in the Ahr has prompted the creation of a relief fund for the German region’s winemakers.
- Bordeaux’s trade share dipped below 50% this week.
- Blue chip claret labels nonetheless led the top trade labels by value.
The Bordeaux 2020 closing report released to members this week. Key insights included how 2020 ranked against past vintages, how prices compared on release to the 2019s and analysis on the reductions in release stocks from the châteaux.
Non-members need not worry, as multiple aspects of the fine wine market were covered this week, ranging from some of the best price-performers in the first half of the year to how fine wine has fared against global equities lately.
Bordeaux was also firmly in the spotlight, with coverage of the 2009 and 2010 vintages and also how the 2014 vintage compares with other historical “off” vintages.
Devasting floods in Germany, parts of France and the Low Countries have made headlines recently. The tiny German wine region of the Ahr Valley has been hit particularly bad, the damage has been immense and many small winemakers are facing potential ruin.
The Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter (VDP), a German organisation that promotes and classifies the country’s top wines, has set up a fund to aid growers in the stricken region.
More information can be found here.
Regional trade
Bordeaux trade share by value slipped under 50% this week but remained well above its 2021 H1 average (39.4%).
Burgundy also had a positive start to the second half of the year. Its trade share by value in July as a whole so far is currently 21.8%, above its 2021 H1 average (20.3%).
Champagne is one region that has seen its trade share decline year-on-year and trade was down on the previous week.
Italian trade share held steady, while the USA and Others saw a dip from the week before.
Top traded labels
Château Lafite Rothschild 2017 was the top traded wine of the week. It was joined by the estate’s 2015 vintage as well. Neal Martin’s most recent score for the 2015 vintage is 94-points while his score for the 2017 vintage is a 95.
Blue chip Bordeaux filled out the rest of the table, with the highest-scoring in the top five being Haut-Brion’s 2009 vintage, which has 97-points from Martin.
