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Vinum Fine Wines Market Report December 2025
Wine market November performance
Holy Moly – three in a row! Positive months, that is. People will soon be claiming a bull market is back and here to stay. And now the Fed has cut rates in the US – at this rate the grumpy old Grinch will be forced into the shadows to emerge as the enthusiastic Elf!
Bid/offer ratios are again a little better in November than they were in October, but spreads are still wide and it is still a buyer’s market. But hey, it’s better than a Liebfraumilch on a cold winter’s day.
Bordeaux
The Liv-ex 100 index was up 0.9%, bolstered by good performances from Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhone. Lafleur ’19 was the best performing component (+c.20%), with sturdy support from fellow Bordeaux peers, Margaux ’15 and Angelus ’12.
One of the Bordeaux négociants we deal with reported an uplift in turnover of c.40% between June and November this year over the same period in ’24 – that’s quite a jump.
The appellation of Margaux is enjoying its time in the limelight. I have recently written about its success with the ’22 vintage in various publication’s Top 100 wines of 2025 (see full article here).
The Liv-ex 50 index was up 0.5% on the month and is comprised of the last ten physical vintages of the First Growths. Château Margaux lead the way there, with an average of +2% on the month. Châteaux Mouton and Lafite come next with respective performances of +1.8% and +1.6% respectively, with Haut Brion and Latour flat.
Bordeaux represented only 13% of our monthly turnover, however. Apart from some mature claret, presumably for Christmas consumption, we traded juicy chunks of Giscours and Beausejour Becot ’22, no doubt thanks to the aforementioned Top 100 lists.
Regional indices
As you can see from the numbers below, the regional indices were more mixed. Burgundy continued its recent recovery whilst Champagne slipped a little.
Burgundy
Interestingly, and mirroring our trading patterns to some extent, Burgundy’s top performers were not DRC and Rousseau, but De Vogüe Musigny, Roumier Bonnes Mares and the eponymous Clos from Domaine des Lambrays – it was the turn of the ‘underdog’ (oh dear, I cannot use that word without thinking of Steve Maclaren’s famous interview!).
Burgundy represented 58% of our monthly numbers. From DRC, there were a couple of big ticket Romanée Conti trades (’05 and ’22) and La Tâche also sold well. Assortments have proved much harder to sell recently.
Other names that kept cropping up were Leroy, Rouget, Roumier and Truchot.
Leflaive and Raveneau deserve a special mention too, not just for price performance but also selling through rapidly recently. In Leflaive’s case from their humble bottlings in the Mâconnais, all the way up the slope to the grandest of the Grand Crus to the north.
Champagne
Although the Champagne index slipped a little, our trade for Champagne during the month was brisk and notched a 10% contribution of trading. We moved decent chunks of Salon ’02 and Bollinger RD ’08.
Rhône
The Rhône index had a very good month, largely in part to the very sad news that Emannuel Reynaud of Chateau Rayas fame had passed away.
It is rare that one producer can transcend an entire appellation and different vintages so consistently, yet he managed this achievement time and time again. In the words of Neal Martin’ “why are not other Chateauneufs like this?”.
The estate is left in the capable hands of his sons, Louis Damain and Benoît, and we can safely assume that it will be business as usual, but RIP Emmanuel Reynaud.
The Rest of the World
Italy was particularly quiet for us, with 1% of turnover and the index barely changed. Despite some great vintages recently, some massive scores and relatively low prices, demand for Italy is subdued – go figure.
Unusually, the US represented 7% of trade, with Opus One and Sloan dominating proceedings.
Spirits also managed 7% with Scotland and Japan going head-to-head for whisky dominance.
Vinum celebrates 30 years in Asia
During November Vinum Fine Wines celebrated the 30-year mark since it was established in Singapore. This is a major milestone and confirms our position as one of the leading fine wine merchants in Southeast Asia.
Singapore is our Asian head office. We also have sales operations in Taipei and Jakarta and have clients and distribution throughout Asia.
The Asian team congregated in Shenzhen to mark the occasion, enjoying a Cantonese banquet washed down with plenty of fine wine and good cheer.
Les Amis Group
In case you’re not aware, the wider group, under the leadership of Vinum founder Mr. Desmond Lim, includes the Les Amis Group. This comprises of twenty-five restaurants and eighteen different brands across Singapore, with joint ventures in Hong Kong and Vietnam.
The flagship restaurant in Singapore, Les Amis, has now been awarded the much coveted three-star Michelin stars for seven consecutive years.
Asian marketing trip
Whilst in the region, Lee Crymble, Managing Director of the Vinum, visited many of Vinum’s clients and trading partners, with colleagues from the UK and Asia.
The tone of all the meetings was more positive than was predicted and gave the team reasons to be optimistic.
To listen to me talk to Lee about his trip, please see our new YouTube channel – all terribly modern!
The trip took in Singapore, Jakarta, HK, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Manila. All our trading counterparts reported that ’25 was a better year than ’24 and there was a feeling of confidence building, albeit gently.
Following on from the tour we have seen renewed interests in some of the traditional labels, namely Château Lafite, Carruades de Lafite and Château Beychevelle, but others too.
Lee reports that Shanghai is really developing in terms of wine culture. It is not only about red wines anymore, drinkers’ tastes are changing and broadening fast.
Other snippets of interest
Thailand has just scrapped the afternoon sales of alcohol ban, first introduced 53 years ago. It will undergo a six-month trial period to see if drinkers can behave.
I once experienced a total ban of alcohol sales in Thailand as it was the night before a general election. Needless to say, the faces of four tired golfers on the last night of an extremely good holiday fell somewhat. We took a very early lunch the next day to compensate.
Saudi Arabia is preparing itself to allow non-Muslim ex-pats to buy alcohol locally, from regulated outlets and under a limit of 20% ABV. I have never been to Saudi Arabia, but I might go there now.
During November, the Hospices de Beaune recorded total sales of €18.75 million in its charity auction, a healthy rise on last year’s €14m, and it’s third ever highest total.
And in property, London still tops the charts for the most expensive retail in the world:
Finally, I would like to wish all readers a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year, filled with a bucket load of fine food and wine.
It’s a rib of beef for me this year, turkey has been outlawed by the in laws, and it will be a secret decanter of something tasty under my end of the table!
Miles Davis, 10th December 2025