Lafite ‘98 outperforming Liv-ex Fine Wine 50

A case of 1998 Château Lafite sold for £5,800 on Liv-ex last week, outperforming the 4% drop in the Liv-ex Fine Wine 50 Index since the middle of March.

According to Bloomberg, the sale on 7 August was the fourth at that price point out of seven trades in Lafite ’98 since the beginning of July and the seventh since the beginning of June.

The consistency of trading in Lafite ’98 around the £5,800 mark illustrates the stability of demand for older vintages of the top Bordeaux châteaux, which lies in stark contrast to the lack of interest consumers have shown for the 2012 vintage.

“The market has moved away from ‘commodity claret,’ and intrinsic, rather than speculative value is what is driving demand,” a spokesperson for London-based merchant Fine & Rare told Bloomberg.

The price of a case of Lafite ’98 peaked at £5,910 last month, but was trading as low as £5,100 in January.

Given a 98 point score by Robert Parker, the 1998 vintage is Lafite’s seventh-most expensive of the past 20 years.