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Burgundy 2023 campaign sees more ‘price sensitivity’ than previous years

Did the more moderate prices of this year’s Burgundy en primeurs and the good overall quality tempt buyers to snap up the wines on offer, or has there been more reticence? db gauges the reaction to this year’s campaign. 

This campaign has seen something of a moderation in price, but that is still only relative, with many producers keeping their prices the same as 2022.

“Nevertheless there has been a solid following for the vintage, albeit with interest being softer than last year,” Mark Pardoe MW of Berry Bros. & Rudd told db, although he points out that the geopolitical and economic uncertainty seems to have dampened demand, despite Burgundy inspiring “greater loyalty than other regions”.

Additionally, rising prices are making customers more aware of where the current vintage sits within the run of comparable back-vintages.

Guy Seddon, head of fine wine buying at Corney & Barrow agrees that there is “still a lot of love for Burgundy” but customers are becoming accustomed to compare release prices with back vintage values that are already available on the secondary market. “The [en primeur] wines are selling well but customers are keen to hear our thoughts and take recommendations, rather than simply jumping in,” he noted.

As a result, there was “no doubt” that the 2023 vintage has shown much more price sensitivity than in previous years, agreed David Roberts, Burgundy and Bordeaux buying director of Goedhuis Waddesdon.

“Burgundy buyers have followed the vintage but not necessarily purchasing in the same volume,” he said.

There has also been particular interest in the village appellation cuvées, but this may be less price driven than it appears.

“Stylistically the wines have performed extremely well at the more affordable price points,” Roberts says. “Demand has been steady at this level rather than necessarily seeing a substantial increase in comparison to previous years.”

The lesser-known appellations and villages have developed a reputation for being where the better value lies, while the prestige wines still have a following – and as a result, the offer sold “across the board”, Pardoe said.

“There has been a solid following for the vintage, albeit with interest being softer than last year.  Some very desirable names or vineyards were not taken up on first options but, to a great extent, were then taken by new customers for those wines. It was a little easier this year to get what you wanted in the 2023 vintage.”

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Demand domaine-focussed

Demand for the whites has been strong across the board, according to Roberts at Goedhuis, with clients appreciating the style and also taking into consideration the risks of the smaller crop in 2024. Demand for the reds tended to be more domaine-focused, he said, though, rather than appellational. “Many clients making their purchasing decisions by grower for the reds.”

Seddon also noted that the producers who attended the Burgundy tastings in London had seen “cemented interest in their wines”.

“At two opposite ends of the price spectrum, Domaine Puy de l’Ours in Savigny-les-Beaune [new to the merchant this year] and Domaine Perrot-Minot have both been received with particular enthusiasm. Unsurprisingly, domaines where demand is high and production is low, such as Domaine Hubert Lamy and Domaine Michel Lafarge sold out quickly,” he said.  “Several of our ‘bigger names’ are released subsequently as standalone offers, which allows the initial campaign to encompass producers offering value and drinkability – both of which it is still possible to find in Burgundy!”

However, Seddon also offered a note of caution, pointing out that while it has been very fortunate to have two large, high-quality vintages in 2022 and 2023, next year’s 2024s will be much smaller and the good wines much harder to access.

“I would urge people to make the most of the current availability. It may look like a luxury in the near future.”

This was highlighted prior to the onset of the campaign, with Wine Cap calling the 2023 vintage as representing “a strategic opportunity”, which would require careful selection in terms of both quality and value compared to older vintages. “More and better priced stock from older vintages has become available, creating competition for the new releases,” its recent Burgundy report noted.

The 2023 is “a vintage full of potential and expectations” largely due to the quantity of the vintage “in a region defined by scarcity” it noted, as well as the expectations for reduced pricing given producers’ desire to sell.” However, the campaign has unfolded against “a backdrop of shifting market dynamics”, with producers having to navigate a softened market where Burgundy prices have fallen 15.2% over the last year – more than any other fine wine region, Wine Cap said, even if its market share remains strong.

 

 

 

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