Back To The Future

Happy Spring!

Each spring, Bordeaux estates begin selling "futures" of wine from the previous vintage, which is still in barrel. The upside is that a buyer of futures can secure bottles at a much lower price than when the wine is released a few years after the vintage. The downside is that one must shell out cash for wine that will not be realized for a couple of years. This process is vitally important to the financial sustainability of the producers. Even serious collectors of Bordeaux and California cabernet sometimes forget the discrepency in production levels between the two regions as most high end (often called cult or boutique) Napa Valley cabernet makers produce and release a small fraction of their French counterparts. Most of the venerable Bordeaux estates produce 20-50,000 cases each vintage compared to 500-1000 cases released by many Napa houses. Due to their huge volume of highly priced wine, Bordeaux wineries must rely upon the sale of futures for financial success. The strongest factor in appealing to futures buyers is a great score from a major wine publication.

Wine reviewers such as Robert Parker now taste barrel samples and release projected scores for wine that is six to twelve months from bottling. These scores are expressed as ranges, such as 92-95 out of 100. In the age of "flipping" wine for profit, these scores are all important to collectors planning to sell their futures once the bottles are released. For collectors planning to keep and consume the wine themselves, the scores and tasting notes written during futures sales can provide valuable insight into the "future" success of the wine once aged in bottle. A favorable score range from a major wine publication can do wonders for the sale of futures, especially at smaller estates and larger chateau considered to be overpriced in recent vintages.


Where and how to buy Bordeaux futures:

Many wine shops offer futures either through a distributor or importer. If you have a shop that you trust, ask if they offer futures and check out their program. If you don't have local access to a futures purveyor, check out the following link to THE CHICAGO WINE COMPANY. It's a small, traditional auction house that can be trusted. I've personally done business with them many times and always with great success and integrity.

That's all for now. Enjoy the Spring weather!


Salud!
Evan.