Wannabe Wine Connoisseurs Can Now Buy Instant Cellars for $5,000
(Bloomberg) – Dreaming of being a wine collector with a killer cellar but don’t know how to turn your fantasy into reality? I understand. The whole prospect of assembling the wines can be a shopping hassle requiring time-consuming research and way too many picky decisions. But you’re in luck.
In June, Sotheby’s began offering an answer to this dilemma in New York and Hong Kong with its “instant cellars.”
Between answering emails, you can simply click on your iPhone or computer, and within 24 hours, one of four wine collections curated by Sotheby’s experts arrives at your home. Cost? $5,000 to $25,000. Bottom line: This is the easiest, fastest way to satisfy your collector craving, spend a big bonus, celebrate making partner, or give a lavish present.
Wow…I can’t imagine wanting this. Yet, I’m sure I’m wrong on many levels. I saw a video of some idiot (Martin S.) that was drinking a magnum of 2005 Petrus. Maybe all the young wall street “Bros” need this…
I can see doing this and I’m not a Wall Street Bro. But were I one with a large disposable income and a desire to learn a bunch about wine, getting 50+ bottles of fairly good stuff across a region or two would be a wonderful starting place for an education on regions and vintages. Is it the most organic means of developing a passion or understanding about wine? No. But why is this such a bad way to do it? Would I prefer to make the selections myself? Of course. But then again I have a massive head start on knowledge and know what I like and don’t. You have to get there some way. Buying random stuff based on Parker, Laube, Suckling, Miller, and Molesworth reviews sure had its massive ups and downs as I was learning the ropes. Then again, perhaps that’s part of the experience.
Agreed. I get asked all the time for advice on what to buy for people getting into specific regions as they start to collect. Don’t see why this doesn’t work.
Some people are intimidated by the purchasing aspect or don’t know where to go to find older wines or try producers they never heard of.
Concierge service is huge in high end buyers. They want the end experience, not the journey, contrary to the mindset of the enthusiasts you find here online. Most are far too busy with their actual careers to spend significant time delving into the deep tracks of a time consuming hobby so most turn to advisers and concierge specialists for all manner of things. Friend of mine offers such a service as this this primarily with automobiles and also dabbles a bit in watches and wine. When was the last time you saw someone with true megabucks on any kind of a forum?
I bet this is huge in Asia with all their overnight millionaires.
Completely agree. I’m naturally a curious sort who can and will dive in deep, so this service wouldn’t apply to me. But, there is a lot of merit to it and I can see where it works out well for the broker and the buyer
Have to agree with John and Fu here - this seems like a valuable service for those who are interested. It may not be best suited to internet nerds like us, but if you have the funds and want to give something like this a go, why not? I especially see the value if they are including wines with some age on them in the cellar (which it appears they are) - while its easy to walk into a high-end store and get a bunch of new release wines that are representative of the great wine regions of the world, it takes a lot more time and effort trying to source aged bottles online via retail, auctions, etc. Then you have to wait for years until its ready to drink. If someone doesn’t have a lot of free time or would prefer to have a cellar that was 5-10 years more advanced than what they could acquire at retail currently, I think this makes a lot of sense.
I can see the Market for this but like other have already said it is not for those who have already developed an interest in wine. there are probably quite a few people who have money and are interested in knowing more about wines.
Devils Advocate Question:
What if you try one of the new to you pre-selected bottles leaving you two or maybe five more and you dislike the wine? I did not see that addressed and we all know how different palates can be particularly for newcomers. Can you exchange them? If so and you are not local, I assume you will be stuck with two more shipping/insurance charges?
This could get messy and add more costs to this service, especially if your palate is divergent from the anticipated and/or traditional and you do not like several selections.
I totally agree with John, Charlie, et al. above. I’ve often thought this was a great business idea and wondered why I hadn’t seen anything like it before.
Not so different from having an art consultant or an interior designer if you’re outfitting a big home. Even if you know something about wine, you might want expert advice before you lay out a lot of money.
Of course, it’s easy to imagine the ignorant, filthy rich just wanting a cellar of trophy bottles. But that might not be the only target market.
I’ve never known a retailer or winery to take back part of a 3 or 6 pack just because after buying you decided you didn’t like that wine or that style of wine. I would think that’s the inherent risk of buying a pre-selected “cellar.” You are buying based on what someone else thinks is a nice grouping of wines, not necessarily what your palate prefers. Then again, perhaps just hold them 10 years and see if, after you’ve progressed through new world to old like so many, you decide you actually love them (and they’re aged! bonus!).
The price you pay for having someone else make your choices is in the form of risk that you’d make different choices had you the same level of knowledge. But if you have no clue whether you like Cali Zin or Bordeaux, and you’re willing to buy 50+ bottles for $5K-$25K, well, caveat emptor.
I can see this being absolutely huge. I have a friend who helps collectors put together cellars already, but he does it with their input a little more. I can see this being an ideal solution for someone who wants to have a stash of good bottles on hand but doesnt have the time or isnt always on location.
I could never see myself doing it, because the research and the deciding is a huge part of the fun in collecting for me. but i also have the time to do it and want to be able to talk about the story and why I chose it when I open a bottle with friends, not just serve a label to them. Its not my style, but they’re gonna sell these collections like hotcakes.
One thing that I would argue with is using the term “Connoisseur” for its purchasers. dictionary definition is “an expert judge in matters of taste” and I would argue that if you have to pay someone else because you dont trust yourself to pick them or dont know what to pick, you missed the boat on that definition.
I’ve worked in a high end retail store where our wine club was bespoke and tailored to each clients palate. Some higher end wine club clients would receive a case or more of premium wine that fit their needs/wants (grape variety, region, style, bottle age) every quarter in the $1,500- $2,500 range.
I actually think this won’t be a problem. Implicit in the positioning of this product is that these are the right sort of wines to be liking. Ergo the people who buy these ‘instant cellars’ will adapt their palates to match
More generally, broadening the appeal of fine wine is existentially important to the longevity / sustainability of wine and the wine industry. I’m glad that Sotheby’s doing it, even if I would never be a customer of this particular product