Burgundy Leads Gains on Liv-ex Wine Market in October

(Bloomberg) -- Burgundy wines led gains on the Liv-ex wine market last month while Bordeaux lagged, with a 2.5 percent monthly gain on the regional Burgundy 150 Index contributing to an overall rise of 1 percent in the broader Fine Wine 1000 benchmark.

Over the same period the Bordeaux 500 Index, comprising wines from the 10 most recent physically available vintages, rose 0.5 percent while the Bordeaux Legends 50, including more mature wines from the 1980s and 1990s, gained 0.8 percent, according to data on the Liv-ex website.

The Burgundy 150 Index comprises 10 recent vintages for 15 white and red wines from the region, including six Domaine Romanee Conti labels, as well as Armand Rousseau Chambertin and Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne. It has gained 14 percent so far this year, outpacing the 11 percent advance by Champagne and Italy and just 6 percent by the Bordeaux 500, according to Liv-ex.

“All of the sub-indices made gains last month, but the Burgundy 150 was the most impressive,” Liv-ex said in an Insights post, noting “the trend of rapidly rising prices for top wines from the region.”

The Champagne 50 Index rose 1.9 percent during October, while the Italy 100 increased 0.3 percent, according to Liv-ex data.

In a further sign of rising interest in Burgundy, the region's share of trading on the Liv-ex exchange rose to 17 percent in the week to Nov. 2, up from 12 percent the previous week, according to its Talking Trade blog. The share of Bordeaux, traditionally the most dominant region in the market, fell to 60 percent from 66 percent over the same period.

“Two years ago the secondary market for Burgundy was not as active as it is now,” Liv-ex said in an Insights post. A pickup in the bid-offer ratio on the exchange indicates “not only that the demand for Burgundy remains strong but also that confidence in the secondary market for this region has developed,” it said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Guy Collins in London at guycollins@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Steve Geimann at sgeimann@bloomberg.net, Andrew Reierson

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