Behind the numbers: First Growth movers

The Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 Index – tracking the price movements of the ten most recently physical vintages of the Bordeaux First Growths – is currently up 19.3% year to date after seeing some of the strongest upward movements in its history. It has outpaced stocks over this period: FTSE is up 9.2%; the S&P 500 has gained 6.3%. But which of the First Growths have been moving the most?

The average performances of the wines by vintages suggests an interest in “off” years above the “great” vintages of 2005, 2009 and 2010 which have been the slowest to rise. The top performers collectively are the recently released 2013s (excluding Latour) which have climbed 32.7%. Each of the other recent vintages – excluding the “greats” – has gained over 20% on average.

Of the 50 wines represented by the index, 49 have increased in value since the beginning of the year. The only wine to decline is Latour 2005: it has dropped 1.5%. The top performer has been the cheapest Lafite Rothschild vintage, 2013. It was also the most viewed wine by merchants in France between January and the end of July this year.

Haut Brion and Margaux are both well represented in the top ten, with three vintages each among the very top performers. The strongest Mouton Rothschild vintage, 2007, vintage falls into 11^th place. Only one wine from the ‘great’ vintages, Lafite Rothschild 2005, is among the top 20.

For Sterling buyers, this is an impressive picture. If a tracker fund had invested in one 12×75 case of each wine in the Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 at the end of December and sold it today, it would have made a profit of £38,538 in just eight months.

 

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