Wine rating

The quotation is a central element when you sell your wines or when you estimate their value. It is a note reflecting the purchase price of bottles in auction rooms, and is recorded in a database. How is this rating initially defined? How does it come into play when estimating the value of a bottle or vintage?

The rating, a factor in the estimate

The quotation is a veritable "argus" for wine. It is based on figures from wine auctions, gathered in vast databases (some with several million entries). The figures collected can correspond to a vintage as well as a category (white Burgundy, sweet Bordeaux, etc.). For example, it's easy to obtain the rating of a dry Bordeaux wine from 1964
This wine rating is useful because it is based on actual sales. Updated regularly, it is not based solely on subjective opinions, but on the law of supply and demand. To a lesser extent, the quotation is also representative of market trends. Wine is indeed a stock market product, represented in particular by the WineDex index. Today, wine is a trendy product. It is being exported, and is now particularly attractive in China and Russia. All this is driving up prices (and therefore the possibility of buying back bottles or buying out cellars), making wine an investment product
In addition to its objectivity, it can also be used to identify market trends. However, a wine's quotation should not be confused with its appraisal. It is indeed a factor in the appraisal of a wine, but the latter takes into account other elements to give the price of a specific bottle: rarity, the reputation of the estate, tasting notes, etc. In addition to the partly speculative nature of wine quotations, the various characteristics of each bottle give the final estimate that can be used in the auction room. This also makes it possible to purchase individual wines.

What you need to know about quotation

Let's repeat: the quotation reflects the price paid at auction. But it should be borne in mind that the prices entered in the databases are not always comparable: some figures are hammer prices, i.e. the auction price. But other prices include fees. On average, the buyer adds between 15% and 25% of the hammer price, and the seller pays an average of 15% of the hammer price. These fees set by the exchange platform also depend in part on its logistics
Another case is that of rare sales. Indeed, how is a quotation calculated if a vintage records very few, if any, annual sales? In this case, it is customary to look for an equivalent wine, with more information available to define the quotation. To do this, experts give priority to wines of the same appellation or vintage.