Wine is probably the oldest man-made alcoholic beverage in the world. Most of us already think of a glass of wine as a party starter, but research suggests that it can do much more than just help you crack a smile. If you are satisfied with having a bit of wine with your meal or with the company of your friends, you should learn that wine can make you smile much more if you know how to use it in order to grow your wealth. What if we told you that wine isn’t just a drink but it has become lately an alternative investment?

If you are shocked or it sounds unusual to invest in wine, we suggest you check the numbers that always tell the truth. Wine production reached a record level in 2018 reaching 293 million hectolitres, a good recovery from a catastrophic 2017. The biggest wine producers in the world in 2018 are Italy, France, Spain and the USA. Global vineyard surface remained stable with Spain having the world’s biggest vineyard, China in second place, followed by France. Global consumption was also stable in 2018, following the rapid growth we have seen since the early 2000s. The USA is solidly in the lead as the biggest market / biggest wine consumer, followed by France, Italy and Germany. World trade in wine continues to expand and has more than doubled since the early 2000s.

The numbers published by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) show that wine production across the world has significantly increased. The same has happened with the wine trading business with new buyers demanding increased quantities of wine, particularly in Asia and more specifically in Singapore and China. International trade in wine has almost seen an explosion since the early 2000s. The value of exports has grown from 13.4 billion euro in 2000 to 31.3 billion euro in 2018, an increase of 134%, more than double. Comparing with 2017, the value of exports in 2018 was up +1.2%. Overall the wine sector is in reasonable health. World wine consumption is healthy. It is even growing in some of the traditional big wine-producing countries where consumption has been steadily declining previously.

In recent years, the concept of the bottle as a commodity or investment has taken on a whole new meaning. Bottle investment has historically been low-key-something people only dabbled in, buying a few cases of wine, and hoping to sell one to finance the other’s drinking. Making a smart investment in wine could mean a high Return On Investment (ROI) which could outperform the ROI of other more traditional investments such as shares, indices etc.

Wine is a tangible asset, unlike shares. This means that you know that it will always be there and it will keep some value despite the potential market fluctuations. Isn’t it better to invest in something real and tangible than having the anxiety that your portfolio could vanish in thin air?