I have always been intrigued by the fine wine market. Who buys $100 wines? Who buys $3,000 wines? Not me and I suspect not you.

ARENI Global, a “think tank dedicated to the future of fine wine,” recently issued a report identifying who buys fine wine. It defined that as wine which costs $75 or more.

Here are its conclusions, many of which are surprising:

Younger than the average wine buyer
Mostly men in the U.K. and U.S.
Mostly Chinese
Mostly interested in Bordeaux in the U.K. and Hong Kong but mostly interest in California wines in the U.S.
Influenced by wine critics.

Producers wouldn’t set lofty prices on their wines unless they sold, right? Right. In fact, I have heard from countless winemakers that they would not be recognized as a quality producer unless they have an expensive wine. Some new producers start with $100 wines. And the more expensive and exclusive they are, the more their demand.

At least that was the case during the covid years. People locked indoors for nights on end decided to splurge on wine to get through the boredom. Disposable incomes were high and there is only so much money you can spend on Amazon.

However, it appears their buying spree is slowing now that consumers have resumed their routines and are more conscious of cost in inflationary times.

According to year-end report from Liv-Ex, Buyers are showing more interest in village-level wines.