I understand that many estate producers, including “ultra premium” producers end up only actually bottling a portion of the wine they make and end up selling the rest off in bulk. For instance, one article I read about Bond Estates on Vinous noted they sell off 20-25% of their production each year, and I’ve heard that Screaming Eagle only uses a small portion of their total production for their wine.
I know that there are negotiants like Cameron Hughes that purchase some of this wine, but does anyone have any idea where the sell off from the very top estates ends up? I would think that it’s still likely of very high quality, even if it doesn’t make their final cut. Are big commercial producers buying this juice to put into their top cuvees? If not, where does it end up? I’m sure there are very strict non-disclosures preventing the exact destination from being revealed, but does anyone have any clues as to the types of wines this juice ends up in?
Note that many of these producers have ‘second labels’ where some of the bulk wine ends up. In many cases, other producers do purchase excess wine but are barred from mentioning where they got it from. Period.
There are more and more ‘private label’ companies that are springing up that are offering ‘ultra premium’ special bottlings for a ‘fraction of the cost’ of the original producer’s prices - and I have to think some of it ends up there.
I’m sure that there are those on this board who either work for or communicate with some of these top notch estates that will hopefully pipe in here - and this is not imply that any of them do this, but perhaps Roy Piper or Will Segui or Adam Lee can pop in on here and illuminate us . . .
Don’t know about the Napa companies but I’ve known some producers who sell off for private labels as mentioned, some who create auction lots, some who sell to private individuals and collectors who may want a barrel for themselves, and many who do second labels, sometimes identified as them and sometimes appearing as a separate entity.
I think this sums it up. I suspect that in the case of top producers like Bond, the selling price of whatever doesn’t make the cut is still quite high, as is the quality in most years, so the most likely option is another producer buying it and blending it into one of their top wines. That’s a bit of a wild guess, though.
There is a market in “we can’t tell you who made it, but they are arguably the biggest name in xyz region”. Generally I treat such wines with a high degree of skepticism.
Overseas is an option as well, though I am not aware how prevalent it is. My wife and I toured what would probably be considered a premium Napa Valley producer who had pallets full of estate wine bottled for an overseas market. We couldn’t see the labels, but were told they bore the winery’s name and were distinguished from both the flagship wines and the second label.
I have to think that NDA’s for juice from highly-coveted vineyards and producers will prevent the whole truth from ever being known.
Sure, there are isolated cases where the grapes/juice/finished wines/etc find a new home in a single-varietal bottling (w/o the source being overtly named), but I bet most ultra-premium stuff sold off to brokers, larger producers, etc, is blended away to boost a medium-quality wine of higher volume.
Sellers want to recoup as much of a given loss as possible, but the power of controlling “brand image” trumps all other considerations in the long run.
I am not in the business, so everything I say is just my opinion.
If you want an example of how to build a successful business based on bulk wine purchased annually from Napa and Sonoma wineries check this one out. Mike also extended the model to providing private labels and brokering sales of bulk and boxed wine. Mike is a 4 handicap, but I think he is sandbagging.
“Trust that what I cannot, and will not, tell you is the absolute truth.” Such assertions are impossible to prove, but are effective to sell wine.
If somebody cannot afford to buy a cult wine, is spending still-substantial money on its purported production exhaust any more affordable or even worthwhile?
While not “ultra premium” I like buying the second wines for $15-20 of Washington wineries that are selling their first wines for $50-100. Many great bargains. I’ve been buying “The Vincent”, Mark Ryan’s second label. Great values and very nice wines.
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