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Futures
Process
The wines of Bordeaux are sold through a futures system
which generally starts one to two months after the debut of
the vintage. As soon as the wines are tasted by the press
and the wine trade the properties begin their pricing,
distribution, and quantity allocation. This futures system
allows for the majority of wines to be sold up to two years
before the wine’s quality can be completely ascertained.
Generally as a rule of thumb I recommend that buyers make
their purchases as soon as the retailers allow their wines
to be purchased. The reason for this recommendation is that
the retailers often increase their prices as the supply
decreases. This is especially true in the case of
prestigious and rare wines.
RETAILERS
Pricing
Retailers will change their prices as the quality of the
wine is revealed. By buying early you lock in the price and
are not subject to any adjustments in the price of the wine.
More times than not the wines of Bordeaux increase in price
in the first two years.
Use of tasting notes:
Retailers use tasting notes as a vehicle to sell the wine.
They are often posted on the display rack along with the
bottle. It serves the purpose of giving an unbiased view of
the quality of the wine by independent critics who ideally
separate themselves from the wine trade and the properties.
However consumers should pay close attention to the written
material because retailers will often use quotes out of
context that do not accurately reflect the wine as a whole,
or they sometimes use expired tasting notes that do not
critique the current quality of the wine. Up to date
critiques are important as wines sometimes change
significantly between the barreling and bottling stages. It
is the responsibility of the retailer to accurately
communicate that change to the consumer in the store. While
some retailers update the critiques responsibly, others are
not that eager to do so.
I recommend subscribing to the various publications to keep
yourself updated on the most recent tasting notes and
scoring of wines that you are considering for purchase.
Once you have purchased the wine:
Once the wines have been released the majority of collectors
and connoisseurs stow them away in their cellar. I routinely
tell people that once the wines have been delivered they
should consume one bottle for each case that has been
bought. This will uncover any fraudulence that has taken
place and will serve as a confirmation that the wine has not
gone bad.
Once when checking up on the delivery of a case of wine that
had been bought some time before and still had not been
delivered, I explained to the retailer that I was anxious to
receive the wine and was a bit impatient with the delay in
delivery. He said to me “what does it matter if you get the
wines now or later, you cannot drink them anyway, they’re
too young and not ready.” I informed him that I always drink
one bottle for every case I buy upon delivery to ensure its
quality, and also because I am not going to wait a two years
or more to consume one bottle of wine, after all I will
still have eleven bottles left. His attitude about futures
was typical but a bit misguided. These days because of
fraudulent bottles collectors need to use every check and
balance when purchasing wine, this includes testing futures
purchases.
Wine is meant to be consumed! Consumers should not feel bad
about consuming a great wine early, in fact it is an
education process to drink them gradually as they grow,
consume and enjoy!
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