Most Expensive Wine, The Why's and What's

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Oak Time and Terroir are the three basic factors that make wine expensive.

Almost all alcohol and spirits are available at low as well as high price ranges. Wine can be bought at general prices, but there are some types and brands with ridiculous tags. What makes wine expensive? What makes them different from cheap or low-priced ones? There are three basic traits that add to the cost factor of wine?

The basic factors that make wine expensive are Oak, Time and Terroir. Oak makes wine taste better. The most expensive wines in the world are all produced through oak aging. Although Oak-factor is often overlooked, it is a fact that oak barrels has the finishing impact on taste of any wine. Age of wine is the major factor that adds to the price. More the wine is aged in oak barrels higher will be its price. Terroir is the most substantial aspect that makes wine expensive. This determines the limit and thereby the availability of the wine. Terroir is defined as the impact of climate, soil, local traditions of wine making and the overall landscape of the area of production of the wine.

Apart from these aspects, there are two reasons related to economy of wine that makes them expensive. One simple reason: Production cost is higher for expensive wine. And the other reason: Perceived Value. Some wines are costly because there are buyers who are willing to pay whopping amounts for just a sip of it. These types of wine do not depend of the cost of production. They are for the rich and luxury market, where people do not just bother about expense, but lifestyle and brands.

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The Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 fetch $500,000 at a Charity auction in 2000.

Most Expensive Bottle of Wine

Ever wonder the cost of the most expensive bottle of wine? It is a whopping $500,000! The Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 is the most expensive wine ever auctioned until 2018. Surprisingly, this bottle is younger that other expensive aged wines. The bottle was available only for a limited time in 1995. In 2000, this bottle was auctioned at Napa Valley and the money was donated to charity. However, the bottle of Sauvignon is not supposed to be the most expensive wine, because a standard bottle of this wine costs around $4000 to $7000. That special bottle attracted such a huge price only because it was auctioned for charity.

The 1947 French Cheval-Blanc is considered as the most expensive bottle of wine ever sold in a general auction. It is an imperial sized bottle, which is equivalent to 6 liters. It was auctioned at Christie’s in Geneva in 2010. When it was sold, it was 67 years old and was considered as the finest wine in the world. It is a Saint-Emilion wine with a Class A status. There are only two merlot wines which were granted this special status. This wine is made of grapes produced between April and October of 1947, the taste of which was considered as legendary. It was sold to a private collector at the auction.

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Among standard bottles of Red Wine, the most expensive is now the Chateau Lafite 1787, which is priced at $156,450.

Most Expensive Red Wine

The Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 1992 is famed as the most expensive wine ever auctioned is a Red Wine. However, the Costliest Red Wine is considered to be the Chateau Margaux 1787. A bottle of this wine was priced at around $500,000. This wine was never sold, in fact, this bottle of wine was never tasted as it was shattered by a waiter unintentionally. The mishap happened at the Margaux dinner at the Four Season Hotel. The owner of this bottle was William Sokolin. After the wine spilled, the insurers paid $225,000 for the loss. The Chateau Margaux 1787 was a collection by Thomas Jefferson.

Screaming Eagle was sold at a charity auction and Chateau Margaux was never even sold. This leaves the third in the list as the costliest one. Among standard bottles of Red Wine, the most expensive is now the Chateau Lafite 1787, priced at $156,450. At this price, it is the third most expensive following the previous two, but since they are with certain conditions, the Lafite 1787 can be considered as the most expensive Red Wine in world now. The age of the wine is a factor behind its high price. It is believed that these bottles of wine were owned by Thomas Jefferson and he etched the family name, La Fitte and his initials on each bottle.

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Burgundy Wines are the most expensive in the world.

There are many other highly expensive wines. The Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1951 was auctioned at $38,420 in May 2002 in Adelaide. There are only 20 bottles of this Red elixir. Wines prepared in Burgundy of France are with the highest price tags around the world. The Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée-Conti Grand Cru is the most expensive among Burgundy wines. Average price of a bottle starts at around $15,000. Its production is limited to 6000 bottles a year and the price has been raising each year.