February 2019 Investment update
AWARD WON!
We are delighted to have won the award for Best Wine Investment Company 2019 from the Global Business Insight Awards! These awards celebrate business leadership and innovation in the finance and investment sector from companies all over the world, and so we are very pleased to be recognised for our work within the wine trade.
2016 VINTAGES LEAD BORDEAUX TRADE
The 2016 vintage in Bordeaux was initially judged to be excellent, and the recently published in-bottle reports from the various critics have confirmed this. Now that the wines have been bottled, some have been given an increased score and as expected, have risen in demand and value. The second wines of the First Growths have performed particularly well – Carruades Lafite is up by 58%, for instance, and Petit Mouton by 33%. The most active 2016 wine was Cos d’Estournel (one of the few to score 100 points from Neil Martin amongst others) which traded at an all-time high of £1,840 per 12×75.
As the chart below shows, the vintage appears generally undervalued having moved little since release, according to the Liv-Ex fair value analysis. Not only is it undervalued, but it lies the furthest below compared to the last ten vintages. This suggests that it offers buyers more value for their money than other vintages, especially against the similarly scored 2009 and 2010.
2016 IN BOTTLE SCORES 
CHINESE NEW YEAR: YEAR OF THE PIG
Last month saw the Chinese calendar enter the year of the pig, a symbol of wealth and good fortune. There are many traditions undertaken to ensure that the New Year brings luck and happiness, from giving money in red envelopes to eating dumplings…
It’s never too late to celebrate it, and just for you, we have selected ten fine wines from previous pig zodiac years: 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995 and 2007.
CHEVAL BLANC 1947
According to Robert Parker, two 1947 wines are leading the history. He described the most famous Saint-Emilion, Cheval blanc as an “amazing”, “mammoth wine”. The price of this wine, as with all bottles of this age, is condition-dependent. Here it stood in the market at £5,400 per bottle. Another wine has also been full of praise, the Petrus 1947 and was called “the most decadent wine of the century”. Effectively, Robert Parker confirmed his 100-point-score for this wine for the fourth time. The Pomerol representative last traded in 2016, when a single bottle sold for £9,500.
LAFITE ROTHSCHILD 1959
1959 Lafite is undoubtedly essential for those looking to get their hands on this “earth pig” wine. Jancis Robinson awarding it the almost perfect 19.5 points and Robert Parker said it was “unquestionably the greatest Lafite Rothschild that has approached full maturity”. It last traded through the auction market in New York at £25,000 per 12×75; however, a bottle is now being offered for £3,030.
ROMANEE CONTI 1971
Burgundy lovers might be interested in DRC Romanee Conti 1971. According to Antonio Galloni, the 1971 is all about silkiness, texture and persistence and considered it as “magnificent”. DRC which last year breaks European record for wine at auction; now commands the higher price of £174,000 per 12×75.
PALMER 1983
Back to Bordeaux, “one of the finest Chateau Palmer encountered” is how Robert Parker described Palmer 1983. Neal Martin additionally awarded it 98 points, commenting on its sensuality and “Burgundy-like sensibility”. In the market, the wine has been a very steady riser, with a current Market Price of £5,399 per 12×75.
KRUG 1995
The pig year of 1995 was a good one for Champagne. The vintage was a welcome relief after four difficult years in the region and was the first universally declared vintage since 1990. One of them was the Krug 1995 that is likely to remain an insider’s wine that is available at more favorable pricing than other vintages. Indeed, its current Market Price of £2,990 per 12×75 compares favourably to £3,830 for the 1996.
HOMMAGE J PERRIN 2007
To conclude, 2007 was the year of Chateauneauf-du-Pape. Beaucastel Hommage J Perrin received 100 points from both Jeb Dunnuck and Robert Parker, and Parker described it as “an utterly perfect wine”. The vintage last traded on Liv-ex at £4,300 per 12×75, below its current Market Price of £4,800.
LAFITE MARKS 2016 WITH HOURGLASS ETCHING
Chateau Lafite is honouring the exceptional quality of its 2016 vintage with a small hourglass etching on the bottle. According to Baron Eric de Rothschild and his daughter Saskia: “An hourglass has been etched onto our 2016 bottles symbolising a vintage that played hide and seek with us until the last moment. The kind you wait for, as the long summer days and the harvest go by, no one daring to breathe yet. January arrived: our doubts started to vanish. This year will be a good one.”
The Pauillac First Growth has previously etched symbols into other vintages it deems to be ‘exceptionally good’. The 2008, for example, is marked with a Chinese symbol for ‘8’ in red, the 2005 with a scale, the 1999 with a sun and moon, and the 1985 with a comet. Historically, the announcement of a special bottle has led to an increase in value in the wine.
NEW UP AND COMING RELEASES
There has been a flurry of new vintages released recently with Dom Perignon 2008, Tignanello 2016, Guado al Tasso 2016, Sassicaia 2016, and Screaming Eagle 2016 all seeing their latest wines distributed onto the market. Demand has been extremely high for these wines, but please get in contact with your account manager if you are interested in adding to your portfolio.
EN PRIMEUR 2018
Talking of new releases, we wait with bated breath for the 2018 Bordeaux en primeur campaign to begin. Next month the Chateaux will open their cellar doors to trade and wine critics alike, to taste the new 2018’s for the first time in barrel. Shortly thereafter the prices will be announced. By all accounts, there will be some very desirable wines, with quality high, although due to problems with mould in the vineyards, following on from earlier frost and hail damage, availability will be variable. Let us know now if you have any specific wines you’d like to purchase in the en primeur, and we’ll add these to our shopping list!
NEW TEAM MEMBERS
AMAURY DELFAULT
Sales Manager
After studying wine trade in Bordeaux for 3 years, Amaury joined the team in 2018. Having grown up in France, he always had a special interest for the wine industry. Amaury is specialised in Bordeaux wines, his experience and locale presence allowed him to develop a good relationships with the wine producers of the Bordeaux region. Bordeaux’s red wine lover, he prefers burgundy for whites.
Favourite wines: Pichon-Longueville Baron, Margaux
Contact: [email protected]
MATHILDE DELATTRE
Fine Wine Buyer
Mathilde has recently finished her studies in Bordeaux and joined our team in January 2019. In Bordeaux, she had the opportunity to taste and visit its best wines which has given her an in-depth understanding of the region. Furthermore, she comes from a family of wine lovers and has a real appetite for everything that surrounds wine. In her eyes, wine is a symbol of art, closely linked to the concept of conviviality and sharing.
Favourite wine: Château Lafleur, Pomerol
contact: [email protected]
HAVE A LOOK AT OUR CRU WINE SHOP
Cru Wine Investment continues to innovate – we launched our online shop in June, and invite you to explore the range.
You can check out all our offers on our newly launched online webshop: www.cru-wine.com
START YOUR OWN WINE PORTFOLIO
If you would like to speak with one of us or receive more information in regards to starting your own wine portfolio, just fill in this form, and we’ll get in touch.
Kind regards,
The Cru Wine Investment Team – www.cruwineinvestment.com
