Online wine auctions hit price parity with live sales
The Wine Market Journal has found a major shift in the US fine-wine auction landscape, revealing that online rare-wine auctions have reached price parity with live sales across most leading indices.
Digital bidding comes of age
First Growth Technologies, publisher of the Wine Market Journal, said the trend reflects a long-running move towards online trading. Editor Peter Gibson noted that until the mid-1990s, collectors were limited to live events, either attending in person or placing absentee bids. “Over the past two decades we’ve observed consistent growth in the internet sector, with collectors preferring to affect trades in real time from the comfort of their home or office,” he said.
He added that online venues now offer unprecedented “scope and variety” as well as higher-quality stock than at any point in their history.
While eBay made an early push into wine auctions, licensing barriers forced it out. The turning point came in 1998, when Brentwood Wine Company became the first licensed internet-only rare-wine auction house running regular sales. Its immediate success opened the door to a wider global seller and buyer pool and popularised smaller, lower-priced lots. According to Gibson, those early advantages have since evolved, with online prices and quality now matching live auctions.
Converging price trends
Recent Wine Market Journal figures show several key indices now track closely between online and live sales:
- TOP500 and HIVAL wines now achieve slightly higher prices online (around 0.4% above live auction levels).
- The WMJ150 blue-chip index still favours the live format, where prices average 4% higher.
- Only the MATURE index, covering 1980s–1990s vintages, shows a notable discrepancy, with live sales averaging 12% more.
“This data suggests collectors can buy and sell younger wines online with the same confidence as at live events,” said Gibson. “Older bottles still tend to achieve higher prices live, while buyers may find better value for them online.”
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He added that online auction growth in the US supports the trend: volumes have climbed from around US$20 million in 2008 to more than US$120 million per year in recent years, while live-auction sales have stayed largely flat at about US$200 million.
Record-setting performances
Online performance benchmarks are also rising. “Last month, Brentwood Auctions achieved 104 national record prices and introduced 131 wines to the auction market,” said owner David Parker. “We highlight these first-time offerings separately—they show both the breadth of wines reaching auction and our commitment to hosting the world’s most interesting wine auctions.”
Since its launch, Brentwood has expanded from one weekly sale to three or four, added rare spirits, and built a reputation for single-bottle lots, rapid seller payouts and broad appeal to collectors and investors.
While many enthusiasts still enjoy the atmosphere of a live auction room, First Growth Technologies said the convenience, reach and strong results of online auctions now make them the preferred venue for most rare-wine traders.
Parker also owns Benchmark Wine Group in Napa Valley, Benchmark Wine and Spirits in Washington, DC, and serves as president of the National Association of Wine Retailers.
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