Matthew Knight
07/07/2026
The Latest Vintage Could Mark A Turning Point
For several years, Bordeaux En Primeur has struggled to win over investors.
Prices were often too ambitious, older vintages offered better value, and many buyers simply chose to wait. Confidence in the system weakened, and demand followed.
Bordeaux 2025 feels different.
According to Liv-ex, this year’s campaign isn’t a mistake to avoid, it’s an opportunity to embrace. With lower release prices, improving value and renewed buyer confidence, the latest vintage could mark a turning point for the fine wine market and present one of the strongest wine investment opportunities in recent years.
One of the biggest criticisms of recent En Primeur campaigns has been pricing.
Investors questioned why they should buy wines that wouldn’t be delivered for two years when mature vintages were often available for the same price or less. The market responded by sitting on its hands.
This year, many leading châteaux have recognised that reality.
Release prices across Bordeaux 2025 have fallen significantly, with many leading estates reducing prices by 20% to 30% compared with last year’s campaign. Some have gone even further. One of the strongest examples is Château Cheval Blanc, released at approximately £2,010 per six bottles in bond, a price that compares favourably with several mature physical vintages already available on the secondary market. This renewed pricing discipline is exactly what many collectors and investors have been calling for.
That shift has changed the conversation, rather than asking whether Bordeaux is overpriced, investors are asking whether this could finally represent genuine value.
Liv-ex has been clear in its assessment of Bordeaux 2025. Rather than viewing the lower release prices as a sign of a struggling market, the exchange believes they should be seen as a positive reset. The report argues that realistic pricing creates healthier market conditions and improves the long-term appeal of En Primeur.
That makes sense.
Markets function best when buyers feel they are receiving value. If wines are released at prices below comparable back vintages, investors have a stronger incentive to participate. Merchants gain confidence, collectors return and liquidity improves across the wider market.
That’s exactly the cycle Bordeaux has been trying to rebuild.
One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding Bordeaux 2025 is that lower release prices reflect lower quality.
The critics suggest otherwise.
Despite one of Bordeaux’s smallest harvests in decades, the leading estates have produced wines with exceptional freshness, precision and ageing potential. Rather than rewarding power, critics have praised the vintage for its balance and elegance.
Several wines are already being tipped as future classics.
For investors, this combination is difficult to ignore. High critic scores are now being matched with significantly more realistic release pricing than we’ve seen for several years.
The investment story doesn’t stop with critic scores, supply is also working in Bordeaux 2025’s favour. The vintage produced the lowest regional yields since 1991, with difficult weather conditions significantly reducing production across many leading estates.
Some châteaux were hit particularly hard.
Château Cheval Blanc produced just 55,000 bottles, compared with 128,000 bottles in 2023, making it the estate’s smallest harvest since 1961. In an unusual move, Cheval Blanc has released its entire production En Primeur, rather than retaining library stock for future release.
Scarcity has always been one of the strongest long-term drivers of the fine wine market, and if demand continues to improve over the coming years, the limited production of Bordeaux 2025 could become an increasingly important factor.
Not every Bordeaux 2025 release will represent outstanding value, as always, selectivity remains essential.
Investors should continue focusing on estates that combine:
The best opportunities are unlikely to come from buying everything, they will come from identifying the wines where quality and value align most effectively. That approach has consistently delivered the strongest long-term results across the fine wine market.
Bordeaux 2025 may not be remembered as the campaign with the highest prices or the greatest hype. Instead, it could be remembered as the campaign that restored confidence.
By releasing wines at more realistic prices, producers have given collectors and investors something they have been asking for over several years: genuine value. Liv-ex believes this is an opportunity rather than a mistake, and there is a strong argument to support that view.
For anyone considering wine investment, Bordeaux 2025 is shaping up to be far more than another En Primeur campaign. It could prove to be the moment the market turned the corner.
06 Aug 2026
