Expensive Wines: A Luxury Item For Collecting And Consumption

Wine, a fine drink to accompany a meal, for some has a far greater value to others. Wine connoisseurs themselves would only be able to enlighten us with tales of the most luxurious wines available, some at prices one who does not study wine would never know about. Based on a variety of characteristics such as the where they are from, the quality of the grapes used to make the wine, the oak aging process if necessary, as well as how many bottles of that particular wine are made are all factors contributing to the price of wine. A fine wine could cost upwards of thousands of dollars.

Although many people buy wine to consume there are also plenty of wines sold as a mere addition to a connoisseur's collection. The most expensive wine ever sold was bought by Thomas Jefferson the third American president for $56,588; it was a 1787 Chateau d'Yquem. This bottle was bought purely as an addition to Jefferson's collection since wine of such an age is beyond its years for drinking.

The world's most expensive wine that was still able to be drunk was actually the most expensive wine ever to be sold in the United States of America which was a Montrachet 1978 sold in 2001 at an auction. This white wine was sold as a lot of seven bottles but per bottle ran at about $23,929. Even this price is overly extravagant; as the story with this price is that a bidding match between two men got a little out of hand both men trying to outbid each other. The actual value was probably substantially less.

Now even though most people can't afford such extravagant purchases there are wines that are much more affordable but still quite expensive which cost a few hundred dollars. Many people like to save these wines for special occasions when they are opened and shared and of course there are the few that buy as a hobby of collecting wines.

An owner of expensive wines must be aware that like any expensive purchase, they should be insured in cases of theft or damage. Just imagine if you were storing half a dozen bottles of pricey wine in your wine storage cabinet and came home to find it empty. In such an unfortunate event it is imperative to have coverage so that you suffer no loss of the money you spent on those bottles. Wine collectors are even more encouraged to protect themselves and their collection with insurance since it might be composed of rare and unique wines that are hard to come by as well as expensive.

In any case, learning about and indulging in fine wines either as a consumer of them or collector is incredibly fascinating. The price range is vast and varying depending on the characteristics of the wine. For those wine connoisseurs that are interested in the more luxurious and highly priced wines it is always better to be safe and have your wine insured in the event that something or someone damages your precious collection.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7091581

The English Wine Boom

When you think of Fine Wine regions, where do you think of? Most consumers think of France, Italy or New World regions as the places the best wine comes from. However, increasing numbers of top quality, award-winning wine is coming from England. Known more for its ales and cider than English Sparkling Wine, the industry has seen a boom in recent years. There are several reasons for this.

Firstly, the climate. Global warming has been kind to some part of the UK. The increase in sunshine, particularly in the south of England, has given vine growers a boost. It is the sunshine that helps ripen the grapes and thus flavour the wine so any addition to the hours the sun is pounding down is welcomed by English Wine growers.

Vine growing is about microclimates. One patch of land can be perfect for it, while a neighbouring patch will not. The increased sunshine increases the odds but there is also the rain to consider. As well as the increase in sunshine, England's plentiful rain has helped water the vines. Again, too much rain and the crops are rained out, not enough and it will not grow. England's vineyards range from Kent to Yorkshire - it all depends on the microclimate around the growing area.

The second factor that has led to the boom in English Sparkling Wine is the changes in technology. Technology has made it easier for growers to know when soil needs nutrients, when vines need water and how to get the best yield from their crop. By tweaking the process here and there, the wine growers have made an overall increase in yield that has meant that their businesses have become more sustainable.

The third factor is that there has been an increase in interest in English Wines as investors find new sustainable places to put their money. Instead of being seen as a cottage industry or the bastion of eccentrics, being part of the English Sparkling Wine industry is seen as a viable business proposition. While it might not be as scalable as some of the vineyards in the New World, or the traditional wine regions of France and Italy, it certainly can be a business that brings both profit and kudos to the Wine grower.

English Sparkling Wine does not yet have the international reputation it deserves. That has not to say it will not come. With more and more agricultural entrepreneurs opting for this way of life, the sheer numbers will force the market open and gradually introduce domestic consumers to the product. Until that time however, enjoy your English Sparkling Wine at the affordable prices while you can. http://ezinearticles.com/?The-English-Wine-Boom&id=7319613

Maniks Read holds business expertise, and has written several articles on English Sparkling Wine. The Bluebell Vineyard produces superb quality of English sparkling wines and share big stake in the UK wine market.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7319613

The Effect of the Weather on Wine

Those interested in investing in fine wines should keep an eye on the 2011 French vintage. In fact, according to experts the only thing that could interrupt a great harvest would be heavy storms or a plague of locusts.

The reason for this excitement? France's miserable summer.

Wine, unlike money, grows on trees and is therefore dependent on environmental factors. The first step to a good investment wine is a temperate climate. The perfect balance between sun and rain is essential to making sure the vines grow well and produce fruit.

Drought caused by unseasonal warm weather can cause vines to spend more energy sending their roots down to find water, instead of creating grapes. Hailstorms can destroy fruits by thrashing the vines.

Frost is deadly to vines although advances in technology have made this less of a problem in chillier wine growing regions such as Chablis. Recent freak weather conditions in France have rightly caused concern; with some French chefs joking that if global warming continues future fine wines will be grown in Scotland instead.

Knowing the various effects of weather on viticulture is a good place to start when you take your first steps into wine investing. Monitoring the weather in wine growing regions of France, for example, will help you to detect future vintages which will offer a good return. You may even become confident enough to invest en primeur: before the wine is even bottled.

Wine is a unique asset. Unlike other luxury items, such as gold or Aston Martin cars, the supply of fine wine is fixed. If demand for gold or Aston Martin increases, more can be made, but fine wines have a set production number - once the grapes are picked, no more vines can be planted, and geographical regions are controlled by law.

Fine, investment-grade wine is considered to be only the top 50 to 100 traded wines, although some go further and specify that only those from chateaus in the Bordeaux region qualify.

TAX BREAKS
Wine investment is not liable to capital gains tax (CGT), because of a tax regulation called the "Wasting asset rule". This decrees that if an asset has a life of 50 years or less no CGT is payable on it.

On top of your annual capital gains tax allowance of £10,100, there is an added exemption for jewellery, art and antiques worth less than £6,000.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Effect-of-the-Weather-on-Wine&id=6589119

Fine Wine Requires Extra Effort and Care During the Vinification and Fermentation Processes

If anything can be said about the making of excellent wine, then vinification and the wine-makers work begins first and foremost always in vineyards.

Picking grapes in a vineyard is nor simple task. It requires careful organization and management and should not nor never left to simple chance of events. Picking of the grapes themselves must be well organized with the aim of filling each vat with the most homogeneous results and material possible. This applies to grape variety, situation of the vine and vines themselves, size of the actual harvest on hand; level of ripeness of the grapes themselves and overall as well as individual health of the grapes gathered themselves.

Overall the basic rule that can never be repeated enough is that it is no use thinking that the deficiencies of one component in fine wine making can be made up by the proper or even better qualities or process down the line. It just does not work that way - when it comes to the creation of and care of fine wine and wines. A person - an amateur who is just starting out dabbling in the fine art of making good if not excellent wine might think that by adding care or better ingredients down the line that they can get away with a poor start or even sloppiness but what inevitably happens is that the best - the really good if not excellent ingredients always seem to get lost in the whole. Starting off to make good wine, and substituting off substandard grape stock to make that product is just false economy overall. Later on , careful tasting of each vat or grouping of wine can control those that "just do not make the grade", but overall if the first lesson and indeed rule of homogeneity is carried out consistently and indeed to the letter , then you can expect few unexpected or nasty surprises in your wine making career and / or hobby.

Red grapes usually go through a crusher stemmer, that is unless the additional tannin from the stems is required and are conserved. The crushing process is extremely light with the overall aim of getting enough juice to start the fermentation. Fermentation either starts naturally, with natural yeasts, or selected cultivated yeasts are used, that is if absolute control is desired.

In a natural fermentation setting and process, the wild yeasts will be the process. Overall normal temperatures to be maintained for the good fermentation of red wine are between 28 and 30 degrees C (that works out to between 82 and 86 degrees F.) Some authorities may use lower temperatures to prolong fermentation.

With white wines it's a slightly different process. The stalks of the vines themselves are not removed. This makes for quick and easy pressing of the grapes themselves. A small amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) may be added go prevent fermentation from occurring right away. Temperatures for the fermentation process of white wines are much lower generally than those employed for creating good red wine. Instead of the range of 28 to 30 degrees C much lower temperatures overall are employed - usually between 15 to 20 degrees Celsius, that corresponds in the Fahrenheit range of 60 to 68 degrees F. Is it worth all this extra effort and organization to produce a fine wine product? You be the judge at the end as you carefully taste your finished wine product. http://ezinearticles.com/?Fine-Wine-Requires-Extra-Effort-and-Care-During-the-Vinification-and-Fermentation-Processes&id=2304049

The anticipated worldwide economic recovery is yet to materialise and the key financial markets from Tokyo to New York are still in an unfavourable state. Confused investors who are being forced to look for secure havens that will prove to offer good returns during recessions and financial commotion, are looking narrowly at the high returns yielded over the past few years from Fine Wine investment.

Few know that Fine Wine has outperformed almost every major financial index in the last two decades, and in some periods has even outperformed gold and crude oil investments. 5 year average performance of wines quoted on the Liv-ex 50 and Live-ex100 indices, the global marketplace, have showed growth of 270% and 192% respectively, effortlessly matching returns from other riskier investments.
Wine investment is not a new trend, however historically this lucrative division was traditionally the province of the knowledgeable few, but now an increasing number of investors are taking their first steps into this exciting market.

There is a wide choice of fine wine investment companies to assist people get into the market and help them throughout the process, whereby investors need not know anything about vintage wine. Buying investment wine from a reputable source and having it correctly stored is the very first step to ensuring the investment potential of a fine wine.

Generally, it is recommended investors consider Fine Wine as a medium to long term investment. Recent years have seen major price growth in the short term for specific wines, however, an investment period of 3-5 years should allow investors to benefit from the opportunities of a full market cycle and a longer phase of 8-10 years or more could see maximum returns.

Prices per case vary, but the top performers will demand over £5000 per case which can double in money. Given the current nature of the market first time investor's budget should ideally contain a mix of traditionally good performing wines, such as one of the so called Big Nine most prestigious Bordeaux's along with less well established, vintages.

Prices of cases may go down as well as up, and the ultimate endeavour is to depart at a profit. The catchword for any canny investor in these difficult economic times diversification and fine wine makes a great addition to any investment portfolio. What better companion could be asked for as we navigate through this rough economic period than some fine wine! http://ezinearticles.com/?Investing-in-Fine-Wine&id=6573411