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Petrus competes with Lafite in Asia
It appears that Lafite’s leading rival in the East could come from the Right rather than the Left Bank.
According to fine wine merchants Bordeaux Index, Asian collectors are increasingly looking for Pomerol’s Pétrus, whatever the vintage.
In the company’s latest report, the famous label is tipped to be the latest competitor to Lafite in countries such as China.
“A handful of wealthy investors have been diving in over the past few months as they realise that owing to its tiny production they don’t need to buy too many cases to corner the market,” the report said.
“We have seen a significant increase in the demand for off vintages of Pétrus in particular and investors would do well to follow this trend.”
The report points out the greatest profits from both Pétrus and Lafite would not be gained from top vintages such as 2000 or 2005, “but from the off vintages – in the case of Lafite it has been ’01, ’02 and ’04 and for Pétrus, ’96 has seen heavy demand.”
Hong Kong is now second only to New York in the world’s most important wine auction hubs and is definitely the biggest and most important fine wine market in the east.
The Bordeaux markets in the US that were so strong in the 80s and 90s have “become much more insular as a market and only the likes of top-scoring Rhônes and Italians trigger any type of interest in terms of ‘Old World’ wines.”
Bordeaux Index also remarked on the large increase in Burgundy sales in Hong Kong and Taiwan, “and not just DRC and Rousseau but lesser names too and also at village level.”
It concluded that although Asia is yet to fully embrace en primeur they are now “the front runner” for the mature and drinking Bordeaux vintages.
The release of 2009 may see a change in this buying trend as Bordeaux Index reports substantial interest in the vintage – but it will all depend on price.
However, the wine merchant does not see Hong Kong and China buying so much that they “pick up all the slack left from the US market in particular.”
Rupert Millar, 25.02.2010