WINE AUCTIONS STARTED WITH A BANG IN 2014: 34.1 MILLION DOLLARS IN THE FIRST 3 MONTHS IN THE US AND 28.4 MILLION IN HONG KONG, REVEALS THE WINE SPECTATOR AUCTION INDEX. ITALY IS DOING WELL WITH SASSICAIA AND SOLAIA.

The 2014 world wine auctions started with a bang. The "Wine Spectator Auction Index", which monitors this particular and thriving market, revealed that in the first three months of 2014, the U.S. reached 339.94 points, a 6.7% increase representing the largest “quarter on quarter” growth in the last 3 years (www.winespectator.com). This grow is attributable to the increase in the number of lots in the auctions. There were 10.496 lots, to be exact, for a total value of 34.1 million dollars, 46% more that the first three months in 2013, when in the U.S. there were 7.147 lots that sold for $ 23.4 million dollars. This quarter’s lots were practically all sold (98%), at an average value of 3.252 dollars.
On the other side of the world in Hong Kong, the average value per lot was almost double, 6.124 dollars. On Asian markets, wine auctions aim at more exclusive wines and in the first 3 months of 2014 reached 28.4 million euros, up 28% over the same period in 2013.
Overall, explains the U.S. magazine "Wine Spectator", Bordeaux wines are the most sold in auctions around the world, and show a 6% increase in value compared to 2013.
But California wines, whose prices are rising on average 8%, are doing quite well and so are the reds of the Rhone Valley. Burgundy, with a 4% increase and Italy are both doing very well. The best Italian wines, according to "Wine Spectator" were Solaia Antinori 1997, sold on average at 368 dollars per bottle (+13%), and Sassicaia 1999 Tenuta San Guido, sold on average at 218 dollars per bottle (+16%).



Focus - Curiosity: In Scotland "Adolf Hitler" wine auctioned
Two rare bottles of "Führerwein" wine produced in Germany in 1943 and in 1944, on the direct orders of Adolf Hitler for his 54th birthday, will be auctioned, online, from home Auctioneer McTear's in Glasgow. One of the bottles, reports the newspaper "The Daily Mail" is a magnum of 1943. A German officer, after the war, gave it to a Hungarian prisoner of war, whose family has kept the bottle to this day. The auction house expects to sell it for 2.000 pounds. The other bottle dated 1944, is listed at 600 pounds. These are of course historic "Heirlooms" and according to experts, given the provenance, age and the vicissitudes that the bottles went through, the wines will be undrinkable.
Source: www.thedrinksbusiness.com