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The ultimate guide to Bordeaux En Primeur

The ultimate En Primeur guide
  • Bordeaux En Primeur is a system where wine is purchased while it is still maturing in barrel, typically 18 months before bottling and delivery.
  • The system operates through a unique network of brokers and merchants known as La Place de Bordeaux.
  • Successful participation in the campaign requires a data-led approach, focusing on the relative value of new releases compared to available back vintages.

What is En Primeur wine buying?

En Primeur, also known as wine futures, is the shorthand for an ecosystem of wine producers, negociant, and merchants that allows consumers and investors to buy wine while it is still in the barrel, before the final bottling takes place. 

While other regions do offer En Primeur purchases, the system is best known in Bordeaux. Grapes for the Bordeaux wines are harvested in the autumn and the young wine is offered for sale the following spring. In practice, this means that the 2026 En Primeur campaign is for the 2025 vintage, 2025 En Primeur was for the 2024 vintage etc.

At this stage, the wine is sold while it is a work in progress, unfinished, unblended and still requiring further ageing in the chateau cellars before being bottled and shipped.

Buyers pay a specific release price for the wine, which can be the lowest price the wine will ever see. This is dependent on the chateaux and negociants setting a sensible entry point and markets holding steady or improving. Once purchased, the wine remains at the estate until a few months after it is bottled, which usually happens 18 months to two years after the harvest. 

A short history of Bordeaux wine futures

Like everything in Bordeaux, the roots of the En Primeur system stretch back but the widespread adoption of modern En Primeur sales has its origins in the early 1970s.  

The establishment of En Primeur was prompted by global recession and cash flow issues caused by the 1973 oil crisis. After poor sales of the 1973 and 1974 vintages, merchants and producers were badly in need of money and with 1975’s samples well received, the wine trade found a way to bring forward revenue and sell wines early, funding the next year’s production and labour costs without waiting for the wine to mature.

It was only with later vintages that the economic advantages of En Primeur buying became clear to investors.

How the En Primeur system operates today

The Bordeaux En Primeur market is governed by La Place de Bordeaux and involves three primary players: chateaux, courtiers and negociants. 

  • Chateaux are the winemakers.
  • Courtiers are brokers who act as middle men distributing the wine to a handful of B2B merchants in Bordeaux known as negociants.
  • Negociants then sell the wine to merchants across the globe who in turn sell to their clients.

Chateaux rarely sells directly to retailers or private clients. Instead, they release allocations to a small group of courtiers who then sell them to a slightly larger group of  negociants in France. Even when a chateau has a strong relationship with a merchant like WineCap and wants to guarantee them allocations, that transaction will still go through a negociant.

Every April, the world’s wine trade descends on the city of Bordeaux for the primeur tastings, with journalists, importers, and merchants spending a manic week tasting hundreds of barrel samples often on multiple occasions to assess the quality of the new vintage. Based on these assessments and the general economic climate, the chateaux release their prices over several subsequent weeks, generally through May and June with negociants simultaneously offering dozens of wines to international merchants, who sell to private clients.

Which UK merchants offer En Primeur?

Most reputable fine wine merchants in the UK participate in the annual campaign. This includes historic firms and modern investment platforms. In a high-quality oversubscribed vintage, retailers compete for allocations of the most sought-after wines, with those that buy most broadly getting priority. In poorer vintages, the balance of power shifts with negociants working harder to place their wines. When selecting a merchant, it is vital to choose one with a proven track record, as you are essentially buying a promise of future delivery.

Buying En Primeur with WineCap

Even if you consider yourself a drinker rather than a collector, looking at wine through an investment lens is beneficial. WineCap’s perspective focuses heavily on relative value and our approach is data first. We believe that a purchase should only be made when there is a clear advantage to doing so. In the En Primeur market, this means carefully analysing whether a new release is actually priced better than an available comparable back vintage. 

Thinking about fine wine with an investment perspective will help ensure you get the best value for money from your purchases, even if your end goal is drinking pleasure. Speak to one of our wine investment experts 

How to evaluate En Primeur opportunities

Evaluation begins with critic scores from major platforms and critics like Neal Martin and Antonio Galloni at Vinous, William Kelley and Yohan Castaing at Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, James Lawther at JancisRobinson.com, Jane Anson or Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW.

The key is to compare the release price of the new vintage against the current market prices of comparable physically delivered back vintages. If a physical wine from a great year like 2019 is available at a similar price to a new release of similar quality, the financial argument for the newer wine is weak.

You need a compelling reason to buy a wine that is less affordable than a comparable vintage already sitting in a warehouse, vintage reputation is a major factor but investors should always be selective. This is particularly the case in vintages where quality varies significantly between estates. In those years, you must focus on specific successes rather than the vintage as a whole. Early on, it looks like the high-quality 2025 vintage will be one of them.

Benefits of buying wine En Primeur

One primary benefit of buying wine En Primeur is guaranteed access in the formats you are looking for. For the most famous chateaux, allocations can be tight and buying wine futures may be the only way to secure a case of the top labels at opening prices. In especially strong vintages releases for a specific wine may come in several tranches often with later tranches being made available at higher prices: the wine trade’s version of dynamic pricing. WineCap would typically not recommend buying second or third tranches. 

Another major advantage is the ability to request non-standard formats. You can order half bottles, magnums, double magnums, or even larger formats at the time of purchase. These formats can be harder to find on the secondary market once the wine is bottled, so if you’re looking for a large format of wine to drink in 20+ years to celebrate an anniversary or the birth of a child, En Primeur may be especially attractive. This is especially important if you are in a wine market where availability is lower and prices higher than in the major markets of the UK and EU.

When the wines are priced correctly, En Primeur can be the best price the wines will ever be. Finally, buying pre-bottling ensures perfect provenance as the wine moves directly from the chateau to a bonded warehouse in an unbroken chain of custody.

Finding price lists and reports

To stay informed on En Primeur, you should subscribe to newsletters and offers from reputable merchants. These provide real time updates on releases and pricing. Major review platforms are key for technical data such as vintage reports and professional critic scores, although merchants will share those with their clients. Critics spend weeks in Bordeaux tasting hundreds of samples to produce the reports that form the market’s understanding of the vintage quality and how it is likely to evolve over time.

Key factors for consideration

Brand power is the most significant indicator of future liquidity. Names like Chateau Latour or Chateau Cheval Blanc have global demand that protects their value, and search rankings on websites like Wine-searcher provide an excellent proxy by which collectors and investors can understand this. 

Overall vintage quality and pricing will dictate the general market mood, but you must also consider the liquidity and quality of the specific label. Some wines are easy to sell at any time, while others may take much longer to find a buyer. Past performance of the estate is also a useful metric.

A good merchant such as WineCap will synthesise all this data before making recommendations to their clients. Speak to one of our wine investment experts.

Risks of buying wine En Primeur

The most obvious risk is that the final quality may not reflect early critic reviews i.e. a wine that scored highly in barrel may not show as well once it is in the bottle. En Primeur scores are generally given in a range, normally of two to three points to reflect this uncertainty.

Prices may also fall. If a chateau releases its wine at too high a cost, the market may reject the price, leading to lower values when the wines become physical and secondary market trading begins in earnest. 

There are also macro-economic considerations. General market volatility can impact luxury assets although that tends to be less significant and delayed for fine wine, and the broad economic climate and the cost of money may impact demand.

Currency fluctuations and fixed prices

Buyers often worry about currency moves between release and delivery; however, for a UK client, changes do not affect the original purchase. You have committed to buy the wine at a fixed price in GBP at the time of the offer and in return your price is fixed so you should not be concerned about changes in exchange rate between the point of purchase and the point of delivery. 

Subsequently a weak pound can sometimes make UK-held stock more attractive to international buyers, potentially increasing its value.

Storage and delivery logistics

When you buy En Primeur, the price you pay is normally ex-VAT and duty. This means the wine is held in bond once it arrives in the UK. The wine will be delivered to a professional bonded warehouse, such as Octavian or LCB, roughly two years after the campaign. 

At this point, you can choose to keep the wine in bond to preserve its investment potential, avoiding the immediate payment of VAT and excise duty. Unless you are able to cellar the wine properly yourself this is normally the best decision as it ensures the wine ages in benign conditions.  

Another less frequently mentioned benefit of in-bond storage is that the necessity of arranging to have a wine delivered to you means more intent is required before consumption. That is to say, you are less likely to drink on a whim and more likely to wait until the wines are at a point where they are truly ready to enjoy before pulling corks. 

Recommended wines for long-term cellaring

Almost any wine released En Primeur will be suitable for at least a few years of ageing. Even relatively humble estates like Chateau Laroque, Les Cruzelles, and Chateau Cantemerle will easily age and improve over the course of 10-20 years and provide excellent drinking pleasure. Top-tier estates, including the First Growths and their Right Bank peers, are built to allow 40 to 50 years of development in a good vintage although they can be enjoyed sooner.

FAQ: Bordeaux En Primeur

Can I buy En Primeur wines online with UK delivery? 

Yes, most UK merchants allow you to purchase online but it’s always a good idea to engage with your account manager ahead of time, especially if you have specific wines of formats in mind. Physical delivery to your home only occurs once the wine is bottled and the duty and VAT have been paid.

What is a negociant?

A negociant is a wine merchant that operates business-to-business offering wines for sale to retail partners operating business-to-consumer.  

When do new vintage En Primeur campaigns typically start? 

The main Bordeaux campaign begins in the spring, usually starting in mid-late April with the tasting week, with prices following in May and June. It is rare that a campaign goes beyond July, but it has been known to happen.

Which regions are most known for their wine futures offerings? 

Bordeaux is the pioneer and by far the best known, but Burgundy, the Rhone, and some producers in Tuscany and California also offer wines En Primeur.

Is buying En Primeur a guaranteed investment?

No, it is not a guaranteed return. Success depends on the quality of the vintage, the value of the release pricing compared to back vintages and market sentiment.

WineCap’s independent market analysis showcases the value of portfolio diversification and the stability offered by investing in wine. Speak to one of our wine investment experts and start building your portfolio. Schedule your free consultation today

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Is wine investing regulated?

Man in wine barrel storage
  • Wine investment remains outside the direct jurisdiction of the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom, as physical wine is classified as a tangible asset rather than a financial security.
  • The Alcohol Wholesaler Registration Scheme and HMRC bonded warehouse regulations provide a rigorous framework for provenance and tax efficiency, ensuring the legitimacy of the secondary market.
  • Profits from the sale of fine wine are frequently exempt from Capital Gains Tax due to its classification as a wasting asset, making it a highly attractive component of a diversified portfolio.

The basics of wine investment

Investing in fine wine involves the acquisition of high-quality bottles with the intent of selling them at a higher price as they mature and become scarce. Unlike high street wine intended for immediate consumption, investment-grade wine possesses the ability to improve over decades. 

This category is dominated by a small percentage of global production, primarily hailing from storied regions such as:

  • Bordeaux 
  • Burgundy
  • Champagne
  • Tuscany

The primary drivers of value in this market are critical acclaim, brand heritage, and the quality of the vintage. When a renowned critic awards a wine a high score, global demand can surge. As bottles from that specific vintage are opened and consumed, the remaining supply dwindles, creating a natural upward pressure on price. 

This is the fundamental mechanic of the wine market: it is an asset that is consumed and  disappears over time.

Investors typically choose between purchasing individual cases or building a managed portfolio. The focus is on the blue-chip estates: 

  • In Bordeaux, this includes the First Growths like Château Lafite Rothschild and Château Mouton Rothschild. 
  • In Burgundy, the focus shifts to small production levels from producers such as Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and Domaine Leroy. 
  • In Italy, the market has expanded to include high-performing Italians like Barolo and the Super Tuscans.
  • In Champagne, we see the most recognisable brands in wine with prestige cuvees such as Dom Perignon, Louis Roederer Cristal and Taittinger Comtes de Champagne dominating.  

These wines are not merely luxury Veblen goods; they are liquid assets with a historical track record of outperforming traditional equities especially during periods of market volatility.

Current regulations surrounding wine investment

The regulatory environment for wine investment in the United Kingdom is distinct from that of stocks, bonds, or insurance products. The most significant distinction is that the Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate the sale or management of physical wine portfolios. 

Because wine is a tangible, moveable property, it is treated as a commodity. This lack of FCA oversight means that investors do not have recourse to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme or the Financial Ombudsman Service if a wine investment does not perform as expected.

However, the trade itself is far from a free-for-all. 

To operate legally within the UK, wine merchants and investment firms must adhere to strict HMRC requirements. One of the most vital is the Alcohol Wholesaler Registration Scheme. This scheme requires any business trading in wholesale alcohol to be vetted and approved by HMRC. 

Investors should always verify that their chosen partner holds a valid AWRS number. This tells you that the business has passed a fit and proper test, providing a layer of security regarding the legitimacy of the merchant.

Distance selling regulations also play a role. When wine is purchased online or over the phone, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies. These rules govern the right to clear information, states that products must be fit for purpose, and as described.

Collective Investment Schemes represent a different regulatory tier. If an investment firm pools the capital of multiple investors to buy a shared interest in a large cellar, this may be classified as a CIS. 

In such instances, the manager of the scheme must be authorised and regulated by the FCA. Investors must distinguish between owning specific, identifiable cases of wine in their own name and owning “units” in a fund. The former is a direct commodity investment, while the latter is a regulated financial activity with its own advantages and disadvantages

Comparing wine investment regulations across different regions

The UK is widely considered the global hub for wine investment, largely due to its sophisticated bonded warehouse system. In the UK, wine can be stored “In Bond,” meaning VAT and excise duty are suspended as long as the wine remains in an HMRC-approved facility. This system is highly regulated and provides an impeccable paper trail for provenance.

This is why most wine investment companies store their wine in the UK regardless of the country they operate in.

In the European Union, regulation is often tied to the production side through the Protected Designation of Origin system. These laws dictate exactly how a wine can be made, which grapes can be used, and the maximum yields allowed. 

While this is a form of agricultural regulation, it serves investors by strictly limiting supply. For example, the DOCG rules in Barolo ensure that the “King of Wines” cannot be mass-produced, thereby protecting its investment value. 

The United States presents a more fragmented regulatory picture due to the three-tier system established after Prohibition. This system requires a strict separation between producers, wholesalers, and retailers. 

Regulation is handled both at the federal level by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau and at the state level. 

For an investor, the US market can be complex because laws regarding the shipping of alcohol across state lines vary wildly. Some states allow direct-to-consumer shipping from out-of-state retailers, while others strictly forbid it. This can impact the liquidity of an investment, as the pool of potential buyers may be restricted by geography and explains why US based wine investment companies still tend to store their wines in the UK.

The risks and benefits of investing in wine

The most lauded benefit of wine investment is its role as a diversifier. Fine wine historically shows a low correlation with the FTSE 100 or the S&P 500. When the stock market suffers a downturn, wine prices tend to remain stable or even increase, as collectors seek hard assets to preserve wealth.

Tax efficiency is another major advantage for UK residents. HMRC typically classifies wine as a “wasting asset.” which means it has a predictable useful life of less than fifty years. 

Because wine is a living product that eventually spoils, it often falls into this category. Consequently, profits made from the sale of wine are usually exempt from Capital Gains Tax. 

Furthermore, if wine is held in bond, the investor avoids paying the 20 per cent VAT and the alcohol duty that would be due if they took physical delivery.

The risks include:

  • Liquidity: you cannot sell a case of Petrus as quickly as you can sell a share in Apple. The process of finding a buyer and executing a trade can take weeks. 
  • Physical damage: Wine is sensitive to temperature, light, and vibration. Without professional storage, the value of the investment can vanish. 
  • Market trends can be fickle: A region that is fashionable today may not hold its value as a long-term investment compared to the established stalwarts.

The importance of authenticity and provenance

In a market where a single bottle can command thousands of pounds, the threat of counterfeiting is a reality although less significant than in the past. For the modern investor, protecting against this risk is a matter of rigorous due diligence regarding provenance.

Provenance is the documented history of a bottle’s ownership and storage conditions. The gold standard for provenance is bonded status. When wine stays within the bonded system, it is never handled by the public, and its journey from the vineyard to the warehouse is tracked and verified. This bonded status is what future buyers pay a premium for.

Authenticity is also being bolstered by technology. Many top estates now use Prooftag seals, which provide a unique digital thumbprint for every bottle. Others are embedding microchips in labels or using laser-etched serial numbers on the glass. When buying through a reputable merchant, the investor relies on the expert inspection of the house specialists who check for correct cork markings, glass weight, and label typography. 

The clear history that in bond status grants is what makes a wine valuable as an investment.

Future trends in wine regulation 

The future of wine investment regulation and trading is likely to be defined by increased transparency and digital integration. As global authorities tighten anti-money laundering regulations, the wine trade will see more stringent “Know Your Customer” requirements. This will likely move the trade further away from the opaque reputation of the past and into a more standardised financial environment.

Blockchain technology is another emerging trend. By creating a digital twin of a physical bottle on a blockchain, merchants can provide an immutable record of ownership and provenance. This could allow for the “tokenisation” of wine, where investors buy shares in a specific high-value barrel or cellar. While this is an interesting frontier, it replicates existing assurances implicit in bonded status and in practical terms may actually limit liquidity.

Sustainability is also moving from a niche interest to a value driver. Investors as well as drinkers are increasingly looking for assets that not only appreciate in value but also adhere to ethical production standards, suggesting that the “Green Revolution” will soon have a permanent seat at the table of the fine wine trade.

FAQ

Is my wine investment protected by the FCA?

No, physical wine is not a regulated financial product in the UK. You should only trade with merchants who are registered under the Alcohol Wholesaler Registration Scheme to ensure they meet HMRC’s standards.

Do I have to pay tax on my wine profits?

In the UK, wine is generally regarded as a “wasting asset” by HMRC, which means it is usually exempt from Capital Gains Tax. Additionally, if you keep your wine in a bonded warehouse, you do not have to pay VAT or excise duty. You should consult a tax professional for advice specific to your circumstances.

Why is “In Bond” storage so important for regulation?

Storing wine in an HMRC-approved bonded warehouse ensures the wine is kept in perfect conditions and provides assurance of its provenance. It also allows for the suspension of taxes, which improves the liquidity and resale value of the asset.

What are the rules regarding collective wine investments?

If you are investing in a fund where capital is pooled and the assets are managed by a third party, this may be considered a Collective Investment Scheme. Under these circumstances, the firm managing the fund must be authorised and regulated by the FCA. Always clarify whether you own the physical bottles or a share in a scheme.

WineCap’s independent market analysis showcases the value of portfolio diversification and the stability offered by investing in wine. Speak to one of our wine investment experts and start building your portfolio. Schedule your free consultation today.