WINE AS A COLLECTORS ITEM

“LIQUID ASSETS”

Whether one enjoys drinking fine wine, or to collect for investment and cellaring

purposes; The fine wine market has the unique advantage of creating the

opportunity to collect both the old and rare, and the new and exciting.

When collecting fine wines the quality, purchase price, producer, and vintage

are of primary importance.

"Remember gentlemen, it's not just France we are fighting for, it's Champagne!" Winston S. Churchill, 1918

• King Zoser (Egypt) is believed to have had the earliest wine cellar during the third dynasty (2686 BC to 2613 BC)

• The Ancient Egyptians kept vintage-dated single-vineyard wines and drank them in cups made of silver and gold.

• The Romans brought the first vines to France circa 500 BC, but didn’t plant in Bordeaux until circa 50 AD.

• Ancient Greeks and Romans used earthenware amphoras to store and age their wine.

• There has been much speculation about the quality of Roman wine, it apparently had extraordinary powers of keeping, which suggests that it was good enough to have the ability to mature.

• The great vintages were discussed and even drunk for longer than seems possible; extraordinarily there are records of a wine made in 121 BC being drunk when it was 125 years old.

Wine back when...

“Here's to the corkscrew - a useful key to unlock the storehouse of wit,

the treasury of laughter, the front door of fellowship, and the gate of pleasant folly.”

W.E.P. French

• The cork was discovered in the late 17th century and after time it became clear that wine kept in a tightly corked bottle lasted much longer than wine kept in a barrel as before, which was likely to “go off” after it was opened.

• It was also discovered that wines kept in different sized bottles also aged in a different way and acquired what is known as a bouquet.

INTRODUCING: THE CORKAnd bottle

• Corks were used by the Romans but this knowledge was forgotten for centuries.

• Cork is the perfect stopper: easily cut to shape, yet when compressed and inserted into the bottle it springs out to securely seal the bottle.

• A large cask’s contents was often divided on arrival into several smaller cask’s. This technique delayed the spoilage of the wine.

• The glass bottle changed with the invention of coal fuelled glass-making furnaces, resulting in a stronger glass which could be exported.

• The use of corks gave winemakers the ability to not only store but age the wine in bottles, which encouraged the process of refinement in wine making.

• During this period the wine trade was already booming and wine regions such as Bordeaux began exporting wines all over the world.

• Wine export was such a large part of the trade industry that ships were measured by the number of tonnes of wine they could carry.

“I can certainly see that you know your wine. Most of the guests who stay here wouldn't know the difference between Bordeaux and Claret.”John Cleese (Basil Fawlty)Fawlty Towers

• In 1855 Napoleon III effectively started the “Fine Wine Index” when he classified the wines in Bordeaux from 1 to 5.

• He based his decisions on the quality and prices of each Châteaux over the previous 100 years.

• Apart from one change in 1973 when Château Mouton-Rothschild was promoted from a 2nd growth to a 1st growth wine, the classification has not changed.

• The laws he put in place in 1855 are vigorously upheld today and controlled by the Institut d’Appellations d’Origine and upheld by French Law.

The 1855 Bordeaux Classification

• Shakespeare was a great lover of wine, and left some of the most descriptive tasting notes of the 17th century.

• The tradition of writing tasting notes also dates back hundreds of years,

• Today’s wine writers are a mixture of wine enthusiasts and educated wine professionals

Writing about wine...

Food & Wine = The perfect marriage

• Finding the right wines for modern dishes today is far from straightforward. It is plagued with difficulties, and the choices are endless.

• Typically those individuals who drank wine with food chose a bottle either from the region they lived in.

• The Sommelier career pathway is becoming increasingly popular, with many chances to future wine education and gain qualifications such as the Court of Master Sommeliers.

"My dear girl, there are some things that just aren't done, such as drinking Dom Perignon '53 above the temperature of 38 degrees

Fahrenheit. That's just as bad as listening to the Beatles without earmuffs!"

Bond in Goldfinger (1964)

• In

th

e c

ella

rA cellar is also a collection: Not only a perfect excuse to avoid running out of wine, it is a stock of bottles gathered with some thought. Ideally to ensure that you have the right wine kept in the best possible condition.

However when buying purely for investment, more investors have lost than gained – vintages rise and fall which effects the value of the wine. No one can be sure how a wine is going to age.

Cellaring conditions are important because temperature and humidity can accelerate or stunt the aging process.

Almost all fine wines will be drunk, eventually they tire and turn to a worthless liquid, so to keep them, and not taste them would be pointless! The value is in the quality of the wine, and not the bottle that holds it.

Over the ensuing years, as the world’s top fine wines are consumed, the rarity and exclusivity of the fine wines remaining naturally increases in value.

To acquire wines from a great vintage, at premium prices is a rewarding challenge

in today’s wine investment market.

1982 and ‘83 red Bordeaux vintages

cost around the same when released – yet a decade later the 1982

vintage had easily doubled the price of

the ‘83.

• Recently wine producers have realised that when there's a global surplus and significant choice for wine drinkers they need to be at the very top of their game. And many consumers have developed a level of understanding and discernment when it comes to parting with their money and seeking wines with integrity and provenance.

• A decade ago it was unthinkable, but the gap is definitely closing between the majestic top end wines of Bordeaux and the best of New Zealand’s Bordeaux blends.

• The great names of France's elite red wines - Margaux, Mouton-Rothschild, Latour, Lafite and Haut-Brion - have always demanded high prices, and wine connoisseurs may have once been prepared to pay $200-$300 a bottle. Those wines now sell for up to $1500.

• New Zealand’s best reds are, on more than the odd occasion, starting to topple the French superstars in blind tastings held by reputable wine writers and merchants . What's better for the wine investor is the fact that the New Zealand wines are a fraction of the price!

Challenges in Today’s Market

"Making good wine is a skill. Fine wine is an art." Robert Mondavi, "Harvests Of Joy," Autobiography

A collaboration of some of the finest wines that were up for auction

• Salon Le Mesnil 1990 – both in 75cl and 150cl• Perrier Jouët Belle Epoque 1998 and 1999

• The Antipodean 1990 and 1993• Stonyridge Larose 1990, 1997 and 2001

• Te Mata Coleraine 1997 and 2000• Dry River Pinot Noir 1994, 1995 and 1996

• Stag’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon 1985• Château d’Yquem 1996, 91 and 97

• Henschke Hill of Grace Shiraz 1987, 99 and 2001• Penfolds Grange Shiraz 1986, 90, 94 and 96

• Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon 1988, 90 and 94• F&F Riserva Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese 1993

• Jim Barry Armagh Shiraz 1989, 90, 95 and 96

A recent wine auction at Bracu restaurant on the Simunovich

Olive Estate

ReferencesCaillard MW, A. The Rewards of Patience: A Definitive Guide to Cellaring and Enjoying Penfolds Wines. Fifth Edition. 2004. ISBN: 1-877082-37-6

Julyan, B. Sales and Service for the Wine Professional. 2003.London. Thomson.

Robinson, J. Vines, Grapes & Wines. 1986. London. Mitchell Beazley.

Johnson, H. Robinson, J. The World Atlas of Wine. Sixth Edition. 2007. London. Mitchell Beazley.

The Wine Opus. 2010. London. Dorling Kindersley Limited.

Ray, J. Bloodlines & Grapevines. 2004. London. Conran Octopus Limited.

penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia.../wine/wine.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenicians_and_wine#Early_history_in_wine_trading

http://winesediments.net/2006/11/26/wine-bottle-evolution/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bottle#For_wine

Theworldwidewine.com

Newenglandfineliving.com

Thehopbeehive.wordpress.com

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/john-hawkesby/news/article.cfm?a_id=678&objectid=10739736

wrathofgrapes.com/winequot.html

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10738171