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California’s top wines outperform the First Growths
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Recent trading activity

Burgundy took the lion’s share of weekend trade with 35% total value. Bordeaux was the second most traded (26%), followed by Champagne at 17.5%.

Some Champagne highlights included Dom Perignon’s Luminous 2010, Louis Roederer Cristal 2009, and Krug Vintage Brut 2008, which all found the bid.

Several vintages of 2009 Bordeaux also traded, with Cos d’Estournel and Angelus trading above market while Ducru-Beaucaillou changed hands 5% below Market Price.

Demand for Bordeaux blends

There was also demand for Bordeaux blends this weekend. From Napa Valley, there were trades for Opus One 2009 and 2010, Dominus 2018 and 2012, along with Screaming Eagle 2014.

Amongst the First Growths, Lafite Rothschild 2000 and Mouton Rothschild 2005 traded at £12,620 and £6,175 per 12×75 respectively – both below Market Price.

Several of these wines are included in Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 index (which tracks the daily price movement of the ten most recent First Growth vintages) and the California 50 (which tracks the five most actively traded Californian wines).

The chart below shows the performance of each index over the past two years. Throughout late 2020 and early 2021, the First Growths were performing better than their Californian Cabernet counterparts.

*Made using Liv-ex’s Charting Tool.

However, despite a surge of US-buying after the US tariffs on European wines were removed in March 2021, Californian prices began to rise. They eventually overtook the Fine Wine 50 in late 2021.

Over one year, the California 50 index has risen 24.7%, compared to just 7.2% for the Fine Wine 50. The top performers over this period include Harlan 2009 and 2012, along with Screaming Eagle 2011, 2014 and 2013.

Opportunities to trade Bordeaux blends

At the time of writing, there are currently 5,000 LIVE Bordeaux opportunities, including Margaux 1996 and Lafite Rothschild 2018.

There are also 280 LIVE Napa Valley opportunities on the exchange, including Dominus 2018 below Market Price.



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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 600 merchant members from across the globe. Together they represent the largest pool of liquidity in the world – currently £100m of bids and offers across 16,000 wines. Independent data, direct from the market.