Category: Wine Investment

The Wine Market Journal Announces the Top Appreciating Wines of 2024

The Wine Market Journal, the world’s top resource for rare wine valuation, has released its list of the top appreciating wines for 2024.

“2024 was a challenging year for much of the alcohol industry, but high-end wines provided a bright spot, as they generally do, with good strength.  The Wine Market Journal has been tracking the values of wines at the world’s auction houses since 1997 and this year we decided to release our list of the top appreciating wines,” says David A. Parker, Publisher and Owner of The Wine Market Journal.  “With wine collecting proving to be one of the most popular hobbies in the country and a large portion of high-net-worth families listing a wine collection as a part of their investment portfolio, we thought this very eventful year would be ideal to start our Top 10 list of appreciating wines. Looking at these provides a glimpse into the fascination and the potential return the hobby brings.”

“Putting this list together took substantial thought and analysis”, said Peter Gibson, Editor and head data analyst of The Wine Market Journal.  “Since rare wines trade less frequently than stocks, we had to first be sure there were enough trades in both 2023 and 2024 to get consistent averages.  For wines less than 25 years old, we made sure a wine had at least 6 trades in each of 2023 and 2024 and an average price of at least $50.  For those more than 25 years old, we only looked at wines that had at least four trades each in 2023 and 2024 and an average value of at least $75.  All of our top 10 wines appreciated at more than twice the rate of the stock market this year. Here are the winners.”

Number 10

Vietti Barolo Ravera 2013.  Average auction hammer in 2023: $177, in 2024: $295.  Average appreciation: 67%.  Scored a perfect 100 points by Vinous magazine, this wine demonstrates the overall demand that Italian wine has enjoyed in the US this year.  Italian wines were the best-appreciating market segment tracked by The Wine Market Journal’s exclusive regional indices. As with the Chave Blanc above and as the youngest red wine on the top 10 list, this also has plenty of time to develop further and appreciate in value.

Number 9

Cos d’Estournel 1978.  Average auction hammer in 2023: $81, in 2024: $136.  Average appreciation: 69%.  This may seem a puzzle as 1978 was not initially heralded as a great vintage in Bordeaux and this wine has “only” garnered scores in the 93–94-point range.  However, as the sole Bordeaux on our Top 10 list, it demonstrates the popularity of second-growth Bordeaux, which performed better as a class than the more highly celebrated First Growths, according to The Wine Market Journal’s market indices.  1978 is also receiving more recognition as a soft but complex vintage, demonstrating the trend of collectors enjoying lighter, lower-alcohol reds. And, even at its appreciated price, it is still a relative bargain among highly recognized reds.  Finally, it is participating in a resurgence in popularity of wines from the 70’s.  Indeed 6 of the wines on our top 10 list are from that decade.

Number 8

Rayas Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve 1979.  Average auction hammer in 2023: $1247, in 2024: $2125.  Average appreciation: 71%.  This is the most highly valued wine on our top 10 list, due to its rarity and acclaim.  With the bare minimum four trades each in 2023 and 2024 to be considered for inclusion, and a reputation as consistently one of the greatest wines from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, this can fairly be called a “unicorn”:  legendary but very rarely seen. Again, part of the trend of drinking lighter, more complex reds with lower alcohol, this and other imported wines may also be appreciating due to the perceived potential for tariffs to go into place for wine originating outside the U.S.

Number 7

Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon 1974.  Average auction hammer in 2023: $150, in 2024: $256.  Average appreciation: 71%.  The first of three 1974 Napa Cabernets on our top 10 list, this is a classic from that acclaimed vintage.  While the Heitz Martha’s Vineyard 1974 may be the single most famous California wine ever made, this longstanding producer has always had a reputation for great wines and clearly made one in this, the Golden State’s best vintage of the. The fact that this is a 50-year-old wine also likely figures into the increased popularity as it certainly was part of gifting and pouring decisions for those with major reasons to celebrate in 2024.

Number 6

Beaulieu Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Georges de Latour Private Reserve 1974.  Average auction hammer in 2023: $158, in 2024: $277.  Average appreciation: 75%.  This classic California Cabernet from BV also benefited from the renewed desire to drink older, lighter wines – and the celebration of the great 1974 vintage in its 50th year.  The fact that about four times as many auction trades occurred in 2023 and 2024 for this wine as for the Clos du Val, and appreciation was slightly higher, this seemingly became “the wine to drink” at 50th birthday parties and anniversaries during the year.

Number 5

Faiveley Corton Clos des Cortons 1996. Average auction hammer in 2023: $120, in 2024: $222.  Average appreciation: 85%.  The sole Burgundy to make the Top 10 list demonstrates that wines from this region, which had been the fastest appreciating category for more than a decade but suffered a correction since spring of 2022, are coming back. A relative bargain for a Grand Cru red Burgundy with appreciable bottle age, this wine may be getting snatched up in preparation for celebrations in 2026, in anticipation of possible tariffs, or just because it’s hitting its peak of consumability right now,

Number 4

Chapoutier Ermitage Le Pavillon 1990. Average auction hammer in 2023: $287, in 2024: $546.  Average appreciation: 90%.  Receiving 100 points from Wine Advocate qualifies this as “perfect” to many people, and this Syrah-dominant wine from the northern Rhone by one of the most famed producers reconfirms interest the Northern Rhône category was strong in 2024.  Here again, we are seeing ready–to–drink wines from the best producers drawing the greatest increase in attention from collectors.  To paraphrase a noted wine personality: “I don’t have the time to age wine for 35 more years, but I can buy those years.”  Increased interest in this wine may also be heightened by the upcoming 35th anniversary in 2025 and the potential for tariffs for wine coming in from outside the US.

Number 3

Sterling Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Napa Valley 1974. Average auction hammer in 2023: $157, in 2024: $302.  Average appreciation: 92%. The third classic Napa Cabernet from the acclaimed 1974 vintage to make our list, this was the rarest, with only 4 trades at auction in 2024.  Here again, we are seeing the perfect confluence of factors for appreciation: a classic producer, a classic vintage, the resurgence of interest in the time period, and an anniversary year.  A savvy investment indeed.

Number 2

Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignon Limited Cask 1978. Average auction hammer in 2023: $92, in 2024: $183.  Average appreciation: 99%.  Surprisingly, the fastest-appreciating California Cabernet for 2024 is not from the hallowed 1974 vintage and won’t be an anniversary wine for three years, but unsurprisingly, it is from a legendary producer and the newly rediscovered 70’s. One of the “big 4 producers” of the era, this is further confirmation that reasonably priced, perfectly-aged California Cabernets are gaining increased attention by investors and connoisseurs alike.

Number 1

Sandeman Vintage Port 1963.  Average auction hammer in 2023: $88, in 2024: $184.  Average appreciation: 108%.  Appreciating almost as much as BitCoin during this period, is this classic fortified wine from Portugal.  Long the “sleeper” in terms of appreciation, Vintage Ports have received renewed interest and have often been the fastest appreciating category tracked by The Wine Market Journal’s market indices.  Top Vintage Ports are garnering more recognition by top bars and restaurants as wines that last after opening and short pours have become popular. While the 1963 vintage is a classic and Ports are known to age effortlessly for the better part of a century, Sandeman is regarded as a mid-tier producer, so perhaps this appreciation can be best equated to the Cos d’Estournel, with second-tier, reasonably priced wines garnering the strongest appreciation in this market.

There were some trends in 2024 with anniversary wines, and Napa Cabs from the 70’s being notably strong.  And 100-point wines are popular for collectors.  But the joy of collecting wine goes beyond the profit motive, to the unique social and artistic aspects of the product. A top collector states:  “Some wines go up in value. Some go down my throat.  They both bring pleasure.”

EU Wine Consumption in 2023: A Marginal Decline Amid Industry Challenges

In 2023, EU member states represented 48% of global wine consumption – drinking 107 million hectolitres. This figure reflected a ‘marginal’ decrease of 1.8% compared to 2022. However, the number was more than 5% below its ten-year average as multiple headwinds buffeted the industry.

Source: oiv

Sweden Seeks to be Winemaking’s Next Frontier

Far north of iconic wine regions like Bordeaux and Tuscany, Sweden is seeing a burgeoning industry of vineyards and a first generation of winemakers trying to carve out a niche.

“There are millions of techniques, and I don’t have a grandfather or grandmother to ask. So we need to figure it out ourselves,” Lena Magnergard states as she walked through the short rows of grapevines at the Selaon vineyard an hour west of Stockholm.

The former communications professional started the vineyard, the most northern Swedish site to have produced its own wine according to Magnergard, together with her farmer husband Erik Bjorkman in 2019 on the family farm. They produced their first wine in 2021 but Magnegard, a trained sommelier, is quick to admit that as keepers of some 1,000 vines they are still learning.

“Of course you can read up in books, but that is nothing like generational knowledge,” she said, adding that they mostly look to France and its centuries of winemaking tradition as the gold standard.

According to Magnergard, the emergence of wineries this far north is largely thanks to the development of new breeds of grapes in the 1960s and 70s, such as Solaris — which was developed to be resistant to disease and is the main grape grown at Selaon.

Resistance to Cold

“What they then discovered about these grapes, by pure chance, was two things — they need less time between blooming and harvesting and they can handle cold very well,” Magnergard said.

That combination was perfect for the Nordic region, where summers are both shorter and colder.

In the south of Sweden, on the Bjare peninsula, Solaris also dominates the 11-hectare Thora Vineyard; started in 2015 by a Swedish-American couple.

But it also features more well-known grapes such as Pinot noir — which is less expected so far north due to it requiring more heat.

For French-born winemaker Romain Chichery, who started working on the vineyard together with colleague Emma Berto three years ago, Sweden is “a new playground”.

The 27-year-old wine specialist admitted to AFP that they “didn’t expect so many varieties to take.

“Once we had analysed the climatic data, we realised that there was potential for many varieties and not just hybrid varieties, which are interesting but not the only solution” for Swedish soils, he added.

As a warmer climate is disrupting harvests in traditional wine-growing areas, professional wine growers have begun to look further north.

However, the Scandinavian country is not exempt from the variations of the climate.

“We have extremes, just like everywhere else in Europe,” Chichery noted.

At the same time, exploring a new frontier of wine also frees winemakers from old established rules.

“We’re free to do what we want. If I want to make a red with a little residual sugar, so a slightly sweet red, I can do that,” he said.

In Sweden, the industry has picked up speed in recent years and the country is now home to some 50 commercial vineyards of varying sizes.

According to industry group Svenskt Vin, 200 hectares are now being cultivated, which while twice as many as five years ago is little compared to the 800,000 hectares devoted to viticulture in France.

For Murat “Murre” Sofrakis, the figure is still unimpressive, and the 56-year-old foresees much greater things in the future.

Sofrakis runs a small vineyard in the far south of Sweden but is a champion of Swedish winemaking.

Equal Terms

“There are two kinds of people. One is the entrepreneur that sees opportunity here… and for the other people, it’s like a lifestyle” he states.

For him, the aim is to invigorate the industry, and he believes a recent liberalisation of the Swedish strict alcohol monopoly should help.

In June, Sweden’s government announced it wanted to allow breweries, distilleries and winemakers to sell alcoholic beverages directly to customers visiting their operations.

Apart from bars and restaurants, Swedes can only buy beverages with an alcohol content above 3.5 percent at state-run outlets called Systembolaget, and some authorised retailers in rural areas.

The proposal to allow winemakers to sell three litres of wine to visitors is currently being reviewed but the government said it hopes to see it implemented in the first half of 2025.

“It’s the first time we’ve been able to compete on equal terms with the rest of the wine world, and that’s very important,” Sofrakis said.

He started in 2001, just two years after the European Union gave permission for vines to be grown commercially in Sweden. “If we’d had this 20 years ago, Swedish winegrowing would be much bigger,” he said.

Source: Camille BAS-WOHLERT

Wine Industry Data: 2023 Europe Wine Consumption

In 2023, EU member states accounted for 48% of global wine consumption, totalling 107 million hectolitres. This volume marked a slight decline of 1.8% compared to 2022. Nevertheless, this consumption level was over 5% below the decade-long average, as the industry faced several challenges.

Source: OIV

The 10 Most Expensive Wines in the World

Few things in the world improve in quality and value with age. Aged wine is one of those things, defined by elegance, rarity and finesse. If you are drawn to the thrill of owning something truly one of a kind, this niche market will certainly appeal to you.

We’ve all heard the expression “aging like a fine wine,” so you may not be surprised to learn seven of the 10 most expensive wines in the world are from 1947 or earlier. That includes three bottles that date back to the 18th century. No need to check the “best before” date.

Rank Wine Year Country Price
1 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Grand Cru 1945 France $558,000
2 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 United States $500,000
3 Jeroboam of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild 1945 France $310,700
4 Cheval Blanc 1947 France $304,375
5 Château Lafite 1869 France $230,000
6 Château Margaux 1787 France $225,000
7 Ampoule from Penfolds, Block-42 Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 Australia $168,000
8 Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1787 France $156,450
9 Henri Jayer, Vosne-Romanée Cros Parantoux 1999 France $136,955
10 Massandra Sherry de la Frontera 1775 Spain $43,500

France leads the way for luxury wines
What conclusions can we draw from the list? We all already knew that they like their wine in France, so the fact they produce the most expensive wines around won’t come as a huge shock.

Seven of the top ten most expensive wines ever sold hail from France, although special mention must go to the United States’ own Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon, made in Napa Valley in 1992. Only 175 cases were produced at a time when Screaming Eagle Cabernet hadn’t yet established itself as a premium wine producer.

Source: https://sothebysrealty.ae/