La Place de Bordeaux: A Global Hub for Fine Wine

La Place de Bordeaux is one of the world’s oldest wine marketplace, with 800 years of history. It is a distribution hub for Bordeaux’s finest wines. This autumn, La Place is scheduled to release about 108 wines from 11 countries.

What is La Place de Bordeaux?

La Place is a system that involves: producers, courtiers, négociants and merchants. Within this system, the producers sell their wine to a négociant, via a middleman (known as a courtier), who then sells to merchants all over the world.

The key players in La Place (drawing by Krystal Wen)

Why is it in the news?

It is believed that, La Place is growing in popularity in recent years as the fine wine market has expanded beyond Bordeaux.

For a majority part in the 20th century, the négociants only sold Bordeaux wines. It was not until 1998, when the non-Bordeaux wine was sold in La Place. That iconic wine was Viña Almaviva 1996 vintage, a collaboration between the French Château Mouton-Rothschild and the Chilean Concha y Toro.

Today, wines from around 50 regions and 11 countries are traded in La place. Including some of the most iconic wines such as Opus One from Napa, Masseto from Tuscany, Cheval des Andes from Mendoza etc.

What is the advantage of joining La Place?

La Place makes it easier for producers to access the global supply chain.

By joining, producers can develop a globally recognised fine wine brand. It is easier for a wine brand to enter complicated international markets by leveraging the collective expertise of 300 négociants’ experience.

The advantage is mutual. By selling wines from different sources, négociants diversify their revenue and lessen their reliance on Bordeaux châteaux.

It is possible that, if too many wines are sold through La Place, the system’s reputation may suffer. As Jane Anson, the author of Inside Bordraux, put it ‘the growth of La Place de Bordeaux is a clear sign that fine wine is no longer characterised by a limited number of regions or countries, but rather by its own group’. Colin Hay, writer for the Drinks Business, confirms La Place de Bordeaux, it seems, is becoming “the place to be”.

Find some of the fine wine on VinoVoss.

Opus One

Masseto

Cheval des Andes Mendoza

by Krystal Wen