A wine being ‘corked’ is not a consequence of time under cork or having bits of cork floating in it, but a specific chemical (2,4,6-trichloroanisole, or TCA). This taints the wine, which it acquires through contact with a naturally occurring mold in the bark of the tree from which the cork is cut. (Technically – as the cork industry is very keen to point out – it can come from any wood with which the wine has been in contact, and indeed, affected barrels are occasionally discarded/treated, but such wines should not reach the bottling line.) A wine is – or hopefully isn’t – corked the moment th ..read more

One of my greatest regrets is when my son, aged about 11 or 12, came to me and said “We’ve been learning about this brilliant thing called Bitcoin in school. We should invest”. This was about 2010 or thereabouts and yes, had we listened to him we would be millionaires by now. But we didn’t. So here we are. You would have to have been living under a rock not to realise the impact that Bitcoin has had on the global financial market. Even though the asset has been highly volatile, those who have held it long-term have reaped incredible gains. For example, if you (me) had invested in Bitcoin when ..read more

2023 in Fine Wine The global economic uncertainty of 2023, across diverse asset classes, was reflected in the fine wine market, which overall has shown a decline (estimated -1.5%) becoming a bear market. This was caused most of all by a decline in Bordeaux prices, largely driven by shrinking demand from Asia. Some Bordeaux has fallen by as much as 13%. Vindome’s Bordeaux index was 5.03% down, significantly outperforming the market in general. Many of the most prestigious blue-chip names have remained stable. Champagne and the greatest areas of Italy – Piemonte and Tuscany – performed well agai ..read more

Like other valuable and investable commodities, wine is sometimes now the victim of fraud – from bottles refilled or passed off as older or younger than they are to outright counterfeits.  Using a trusted wine supplier is the best way to avoid the possibility of falling victim to counterfeit or badly stored wine in a complex wine market. Fine wines – and especially old fine wines from before around 1990 – without adequate proof of provenance may be treated by experts and buyers as ‘likely fake’ rather than ‘potentially fake’. Trusted suppliers maintain the proof of provenance needed to pr ..read more

In contrast to established global commodity markets, the fine wine market remains in its early stages, still playing catch-up with more mature counterparts. This lag has led to a swift expansion in infrastructure and financial involvement, resulting in periods of significant volatility, marked by both triumphs and setbacks.  The fine wine market has adapted to the emergence of digital investment platforms (such as Vindome),  providing investors with liquidity and a diversified approach. Its historical trajectory underscores a persistent allure, positioning fine wine as a sophisticate ..read more

Traditionally, the worlds of fine wine, investing, and particularly fine wine investing, have been shaped by men. Perceived as male-dominated, with images of elderly gentlemen in cellars or boardrooms, the world of wine has been an off-limits subject to the fairer sex. But that is all changing. Over the past decade, the landscape of the fine wine industry has experienced a notable shift as women have increasingly asserted their presence and influence in the realm of wine investment. Recent trends indicate that women are not only avid wine lovers but are also becoming significant players in the ..read more

La Place de Bordeaux is a wine marketplace, not an actual physical building. It was originally established because the storage of wine was difficult in Bordeaux. Other than in Saint Emilion, where there are caves dating back to Roman times, it was impossible to dig deep cellars, particularly in the Médoc region, where the majority of Bordeaux’s famous fine wines come from. The system of selling the wine ‘En Primeur’  or as futures developed where the châteaux sold the latest vintage ahead of its maturation. This enabled them to ship the wine out as soon as it was bottled, often in the Nov ..read more

Hands up if you have been bitten by the Barbie bug. If your wardrobe has slowly seen an influx of pink clothes, or your home has had a few whimsical touches added in the past few weeks, then you’re not alone. Blame Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, and the Barbie film. Assuming you know what we are talking about, of course, and if you don’t, then where have you been? The film that everyone is talking about opened to immense critical and box office success on July 21st this year and exceeded all expectations. Barbie made a record-setting $155 million in box office sales in the U.S ..read more

Market Turmoil continues against a backdrop of Global economic uncertainty and recession fears. Fine Wine offers stability. The 2022 En Primeur Campaign is seeing strong interest and significant price increases. Vindome experienced several areas of growth well above the market average. Global market turmoil continues The unsettled nature of the first quarter of the year continued into the second with inflation, widespread industrial action, particularly in Europe, and against the backdrop of the continued war in Ukraine. Fuel price rises, however, started to abate, especially in Europe and ..read more

Market Turmoil continues against a backdrop of Global economic uncertainty and recession fears. Fine Wine offers stability. The 2022 En Primeur Campaign is seeing strong interest and significant price increases. Vindome experienced several areas of growth well above the market average. Global market turmoil continues The unsettled nature of the first quarter of the year continued into the second with inflation, widespread industrial action, particularly in Europe, and against the backdrop of the continued war in Ukraine. Fuel price rises, however, started to abate, especially in Europe and ..read more