Wine Statistics and Summer Fun

The lazy, hazy days of summer seem somehow still far away as the spring auction season concludes at Waddington’s. It’s been an exhilarating season – we have seen so much great art, rare and beautiful objects and, of course, sensational Fine Wine and Spirits, find new homes with happy collectors all over the globe.

For the Fine Wine department, we find it is a good time to reflect on and analyze the data from the first half of the year and the results are extremely encouraging and speak to the breadth and buoyancy of our market. Here are some of the statistical highlights for the first half of 2019.

• 1512 lots of Fine Wine and Spirits offered averaging 98.3% sold
• 13,236 bids placed
• 174% over the reserve bid on average
• 132% over the low estimate on average

We have also tracked our selling prices on key benchmark wines against average international prices at auction. Here are some of the key results:

1996  Chateau Latour

1996 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion

1986 Chateau Margaux

2000 Chateau Haut Brion

1986 Chateau Lafite

1982 Chateau Mouton Rothschild

One of many points we can conclude from this data is that it is an opportune time to be a participant in the Fine Wine market with excellent availability of an array of world class wines and for sellers, a vibrant buyer base that equal and exceed international markets.

We will spend the summer months preparing for our fall auctions. We look forward to sharing an exceptional selection of Wine and Spirits with you in our September and November auctions. Please contact us if you are considering selling all or part of your collection.

Whether you are poaching lobster to match your Montrachet or grilling some game to pair with your California Cabernet, we thank you for your interest in our auctions and wish you many vinous pleasures this summer.

Cheers,

Stephen, Joann, Devin and Robin