Investing in wine: the end of the Burgundy bubble

Tastes – and prices – are starting to change in the wine market as Burgundy goes out of fashion. 

Bottle of 1945 vintage Romanee-Conti wine © FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images

This 1945 Romane-Conti fetched $558,000
(Image credit: Bottle of 1945 vintage Romanee-Conti wine © FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

Burgundy has long been France's premier wine region. The Bordelais may take issue with that statement. But it's the Burgundians who fetch the highest prices for their bottles at present. It was, after all, a bottle of 1945 Romane-Conti that fetched a record-breaking $558,000 at Sotheby's in New York last October, while another sold for $496,000 at the same auction. "These wines are now virtually unobtainable, rare as they were even decades ago," said the honorary chairman of Sotheby's Wine, Serena Sutcliffe, after the sale. "Those who bought them have vinous miracles in their possession."

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up
Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

You can follow Chris on Instagram.