Bordeaux first growth Château Lafite Rothschild definitely has the heart and wallet of wine lovers in Asia, as it’s revealed to be the most searched wine in the region based on data compiled by Liv-ex.
According to Liv-ex, an online fine wine trading platform in the UK, wine merchants in Asia have shown zealous interest in the Bordeaux first growth, more than any other wine traded in the UK, US or Europe.
Based on winery names searched in the first half of the year, Château Lafite Rothschild leads in two regions, namely Asia and the UK. But when factoring in winery name and vintage, the Bordeaux first growth virtually dominated the top 10 list for Asia.
In Europe, the rarefied Petrus remains the wine darling for merchants, while in the US it’s Burgundy’s Coche Dury that’s commanding merchants’ interest.
In Asia, when viewing searches on winery name and vintage, Lafite 2016 is by far the most searched wine. The vintage got three 100 points from critics including James Suckling, Jeb Dunnuck and Decanter magazine. It sells for about HK$ 6,300 (US$812) a bottle in Hong Kong on Wine Searcher.
On the top 10 list, the chateau took up eights spots, with fellow Bordeaux first growth Chateau Mouton Rothschild taking up the remaining two. This shows that Bordeaux, particularly Lafite, is still the reference point for fine wine among wine lovers and merchants in Asia, particularly in China.
It is the most famous of the Bordeaux first growths, and by far the most known wine name in China.
It’s worthy to note that French wines populated the lists for Asia, Europe, UK or US. Only Italy’s famous Super Tuscan Sassicaia and Napa’s cult wine Screaming Eagle managed to secure a spot on the lists.
