I have to wonder where prices for Bordeaux 2010 futures are going to go, and how the rest of the high-priced wines will follow with the news I am hearing from key Bordeaux buyers around the world. My sources say that 2010 Bordeaux is not selling well, and the demand is down as much as 80 percent compared to 2009.
“The demand for 2010 Bordeaux is nothing like last year for 2009,” said one friend today from the United Kingdom. “Some wines are not selling at all.”
What I gather from some top wine merchants around the world for 2010 Bordeaux is that they are not investing in the region’s newest vintage, and certainly not for holding stock. They are buying what they can sell.
“I can’t tie up my money in another young vintage of Bordeaux,” said a fine wine merchant from Switzerland over the weekend.
I can confirm that top wine collectors in Hong Kong are buying less 2010 than 2009 (at least, that is what they told me in HK a few weeks ago). They are focusing more on bottled wines anyway since they are not keen futures buyers. Check out the PDF of my Bordeaux 2010 futures guide I did with Hong Kong Tatler magazine.
Nonetheless, some Bordeaux 2010s are selling at ease. Word on the street is that London merchants are blasting out the Pontet-Canet 2010 – one of the wines of the vintage for me – for about $160 a bottle to consumers. It came out today. That said, one merchant said he couldn’t give the Gruaud-Larose away at its 2010 price.
Is a price correction for all fine wines on the way? Or is it that back-to-back top vintages for Bordeaux are hard to sell in a difficult economy?
I suspect people invested so much in 2009, and I suspect 2005 as well, That they will be very selective and if buying at all, in much smaller quantities. I may buy a mix of 12-16 bottles.
Marc