Frequently Asked Questions About Wine Collecting
Similar to owning property, when you buy fine wine you physically own a tangible asset that holds an intrinsic value.
To minimise any speculation or undue exposure our Wine Consultants only recommend wines based on market conditions and Robert Parker’s scoring system.
The main risk is buying a wine of poor or inferior quality or a wine that is in high supply and low popularity as your wine may not increase in value.
As a general rule, it’s always best to buy the best quality, low-production wine that your budget will allow.
We recommend a minimum 5-year hold to achieve the best gains. The longer you hold a wine the scarcer a wine becomes, which will naturally increase its value as demand outstrips supply.
Once you’re a client you will be assigned a dedicated wine consultant who will keep you up to date as frequently as you wish with market trends and movements within the market.
Of course, we operate an open-door policy or we can meet you at a location of your choice.
Once your purchase is complete, we arrange for you to open a personal private bond account where your wine can be transferred and held in your name as the owner of the asset.
Your wines are held securely with your own personal account within one of the UK’s leading HMRC Government regulated independent bonded warehouses. This is a controlled environment to ensure your wine is kept in prime condition and provenience is maintained.
Your wine assets will be fully insured on an independent policy by the bond or yourself. This means you will be offered a replacement or equivalent value in the unlikely event any loss or damage is incurred.
As a client, you can request a free valuation at any time to get an update on market trading values.
En-primeur wine is still in the barrel and subject to speculation, so the wine is still young so can change as it develops and matures. Therefore, it’s often safer to buy wine that is bottled with a recognised definitive grade or score
The condition and provenience of a wine can seriously affect its value. For this reason, we only deal original, wooden-cased wine that is held in bond and has not been shipped overseas or labelled for an overseas market.
UKV International AG employs an FCA-licenced escrow service that operates a client account. This means that client funds are held independently and only released upon confirmation of wine being ready for transfer or ordered from a supplier (if not already held in stock).
Once transferred into your own bonded account, ownership is transferred and you are in complete control of your wine assets. UKV International AG has no control or access to your wine.
As a client, you can request a free valuation at anytime to get an update on market trading values.
Each bonded warehouse operates either an inclusive insurance cover within their storage charge or you will be offered insurance through an independent insurance company that specialises in fine wine insurance to ensure your wine assets are covered.
You are free to resell your wine through any merchant or broker – you have no obligation to sell your wine through UKV International AG and we have no obligation to sell your wine. Should you wish us to sell your wine you should contact our brokerage service.
On completion of a purchase and receipt of cleared funds into our client account, we will arrange for the transfer of your wine and ownership within 30 working days.
The cost of storage is approximately £10-12 per case, per annum, and invoiced to you directly by the bonded warehouse as the account holder. This charge is made in advance for a 12-month period by direct debit.
Should you wish to drink your wine, you can request delivery to a location of your choice directly with the bonded warehouse. Please be aware you will need to pay the HMRC Duty and VAT on your wine before it can be removed together, alongside any outstanding storage cost and delivery charge. Please head to our wine taxation page for more details.
We do not recommend this unless you are going to drink your wine within a relatively short period of time. Wine purchased for future resale should always be stored within a bonded warehouse controlled environment to maintain provenience.