Sales of wines and spirits at Sotheby’s auctions in 2024 were down -30%, 114 million US dollars

2024 was a challenging year for wine, even for the fine wines market, which up until a few years ago, had seemed immune to the crisis, while instead it has suffered in 2024, too. The majority of industry insiders say that recovery will take at least until 2027 (Live-Ex, the segment’s “thermometer” that WineNews analyzed, shows negative also for 2025, especially due to the effect of US tariffs). The consequences are also being felt in the world of auctions, whose scenario is changing because people are now looking for a bargain, in other words, lower prices, buying large bottles at interesting prices to uncork them, and are less interested in investments. Evidence of this trend comes from Sotheby’s “Wine & Spirits Market Report” 2024, which was published recently. The report reveals a drop in auction sales, in general, as much as 30%, down to 114 million US dollars (from 159 million US dollars in 2023). However, cumulative sales registered in the category from 1995 to today have reached over 1.8 billion US dollars, confirming that Sotheby’s auction house is the undisputed leader in single-owner auctions. The merit goes also to collaborations with the most prestigious companies as well as increasingly demanding collectors, who are redrawing the “geography” of the global fine wines market. The downfall was caused mainly by high-end spirits, while sales of Scotch and Japanese Whisky did well in value (for instance, more that 370.000 US dollars for a barrel of 1952 Karuizawa whisky in Hong Kong). Sixty-one auctions were held in 10 Countries, including, for the first time, Switzerland, which was held by Sotheby's in Geneva (plus, the auction house celebrated 30 years of activity in New York, and it holds the oldest wine auctions in the world, such as Hospices de Beaune, the Napa Valley Vintners and La Cité du Vin in Bordeaux), totaling 21.398 lots sold.
Furthermore, the USA, thanks to the participation of the best bidders, topped Hong Kong in annual wine sales, while Asia continues to maintain its leadership position in the fine wine trade, considering that mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, are among the 10 best markets worldwide.
According to the report, 2024 was a “crucial year”. For the first time, total sales of Bordeaux (the “undisputed king” of auctions went from a 62% share in 2014 to just 15% in 2024), Burgundy, which on the contrary consolidated its position in value (in spite of a drop in prices that are still obviously, high and appealing) at 34% of sales, following the peak 46% in 2021, and spirits, fell below 70% of total turnover. The decline indicates that collectors and investors are broadening their interests, looking towards the emerging world wine regions. As a matter of fact, wine sales from California and Spain have more than doubled, and growth is continuing for wines from Italy and the Rhone Valley.
Scrolling the “Top 10” highest priced wines at auctions and charity auctions, Burgundy dominates, as mentioned above, even for individual producers. Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, together with Hospices de Beaune, reached 36% of global wine sales, and market shares of 19% and 17%, respectively. Next, icons such as Domaine Armand Rousseau (4%), Domaine Leroy + d’Auvenay (4%), Petrus (3%), Château Lafite Rothschild (2%) and Château Mouton Rothschild (2%) have continued to dominate wine sales, maintaining their position as pillars in the “Top 10” Sotheby’s producers for years. Demand for Maison Krug has continued to grow for the second year in a row, while Domaine Georges Roumier has re-entered the rankings, for the first time since the pandemic, and La Mission Haut-Brion has become the second best-selling Bordeaux Château (all at 2%).
The top lot in 2024 was a 12-bottle case of Henri Jayer’s 1999 Vosne-Romanée Cros Parantoux, which sold for 152.596 US dollars in Hong Kong. In second place, a 6-Magnum of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti 1994, and in third place, a Matusalem of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti 1983, sold for 143.907 US dollars and 143.496 US dollars, respectively, in Hong Kong. Following these, the top selling lots were from big names such as Domaine d’Auvenay, Domaine Georges Roumier and Domaine Armand Rousseau. The top lot in the charity auctions was Pièce de Charité - Beaune Premier Cru Les Bressandes 2024 from Hospices de Beaune, which grossed 483.000 US dollars, making it the highest-priced charity wine of the year, at the century-old auction, ahead of the other two lots in second and third places, that is, two Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru Cuvée Dames de Flandres 2024, which sold for 403.969 US dollars. The prestigious lots of the Collective Napa Valley auction, which achieved the highest prices, rounded out the ranking.
In 2024, Sotheby's held auctions at many prestigious events around the world, where Bordeaux was in the lead (35%) in wine sales by region, followed by Burgundy (26%) and Champagne (12%), and Italy held an excellent position (8%). The sales were all merit of iconic wines ranging from Domaine Coche-Dury to Château Margaux, Château Latour to Petrus, Château Haut Brion, Domaine & Maison Leroy, Maison Krug, Dom Pérignon, Château Cheval Blanc, Château Mouton Rothschild, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Château Lafite Rothschild, Ornellaia & Masseto (Frescobaldi Group) and E. Guigal.
Finally, according to the Sotheby’s report, the identikit of collectors revealed they have a higher global footprint, participate from over 60 Countries and reflect an unprecedented global interest in wine. Distribution is now divided almost equally among Asia, the Americas and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa). This historic shift is mainly driven by the United States, where the number of buyers has doubled, compared to Hong Kong, and has registered a substantial increase compared to 2023, when the difference between the two was only 18%. Participation in Asia is very high, as five of the top 10 Countries (Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia) are the ones located on the continent that spend the most. The year 2024 also marked the first time that EMEA emerged as a leading market. Asian investors in 2024 took 32% of total sales, while Europe, the Middle East and Africa combined accounted for 35%, driven largely by Europe, and the Americas 33%. Hong Kong is the heart of Sotheby’s wine auctions in Asia, as buyers from the city spent 14 million US dollars in 2024, followed by mainland China and Singapore at 4 million US dollars each. Taiwan contributed 3 million US dollars to purchases, and Malaysian buyers contributed 1 million US dollars. What stands out is that in spite of being a key consumer market, Japan does not appear on the list. In the Americas, the United States dominates, at 28 million US dollars, way ahead of the rest of the continent, which, overall, was worth 3 million US dollars. New York surpassed Hong Kong, for the first time, in annual wine auction sales, becoming Sotheby’s best-performing venue, and setting its second-highest annual sales record to date. However, despite the U.S. market surge, Asia’s leadership is solid, Sotheby’s report concluded, as it accounts for half of the auction house’s top 10 markets worldwide.