U.S. Buyers Lift Their Share of Fine-Wine Trading

Trade levels in the fine-wine market fell this week as bank holidays in Britain and Europe, along with the start of Bordeaux’s 2025 En Primeur campaign, pulled attention away from trading, according to Liv-ex data released Friday.

Even so, buyers in the United States remained active and increased their share of purchases, overtaking the United Kingdom. Liv-ex said U.S. demand was supported in part by Opus One, which helped lift the American share of traded value to 5.8%.

Bordeaux again led the market, accounting for 28.9% of traded value. Le Pin 2023 was the region’s top wine by value, changing hands at £19,912 per 12-bottle case, or about $27,279, and €1,941 per bottle. Liv-ex said the 2023 vintage is now trading actively and was Bordeaux’s second most traded vintage this week after 2017.

Burgundy ranked second with an 18.5% share, down slightly from 20.1% the previous week. Champagne followed with 14.8%. Armand de Brignac’s Ace of Spades Gold Brut was the most traded wine by value across the market, with buying concentrated in Asia. Salon also drew interest, with demand split evenly between Britain and the United States.

The Rhône held a 5.5% share of the market, continuing a strong run. E. Guigal was the region’s top producer by value, while wines from Famille Perrin and Clos des Papes changed hands most often.

Tuscany remained above its April average despite a slight decline from last week. Higher-volume trading in Tignanello accounted for nearly a quarter of the region’s traded value, and Liv-ex said there was also steady U.S.-backed buying in Brunello di Montalcino.