Corkonomics

The economics of wine production, collection, and vineyards

CorkonomicsThe economics of wine production, collection, and vineyards
The numbers
Vineyard land · Pauillac≈$2,798,250 a hectare▼ down 17% on 20232024Opening price · Château Lafite Rothschild 2025≈$376 a bottle▲ up 17% on the year beforeSold at auction · Romanée-Conti Grand Cru, DRC 2019$22,917 a bottleSotheby's, Sep 2026Cost to make one bottle · Burgundy grand cru (Pinot Noir)$48–283US duty on wine from · Canada+50%since Aug 2026Everyday bottle in a US shop$13.77 a litre▼ down 1.3% in a yearSep 2026Vineyard land · Margaux≈$1,567,020 a hectare▼ down 7% on 20232024Opening price · Château Cheval Blanc 2025≈$376 a bottle▲ up 22% on the year beforeSold at auction · La Tâche Grand Cru, DRC 2018$5,417 a bottleSotheby's, Sep 2026Cost to make one bottle · Champagne prestige cuvée$26–89US duty on wine from · Australia+12.5%since Jul 2026Vineyard land · Côte-Rôtie≈$1,511,055 a hectare▲ up 8% on 20232024Opening price · Château Mouton Rothschild 2025≈$336 a bottle▲ up 19% on the year beforeSold at auction · Richebourg Grand Cru, DRC 2012$3,542 a bottleSotheby's, Sep 2026Cost to make one bottle · Bordeaux classified growth (2nd–5th)$17–61US duty on wine from · New Zealand+12.5%since Jul 2026Vineyard land · Côte de Nuits grand cru≈$7,275,450 a hectare2019Opening price · Château Palmer 2025≈$268 a bottle▼ down 19% on the year beforeVineyard land · Pomerol≈$2,238,600 a hectare2023
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What a bottle costs to make

We added up what it takes to make one bottle of sixteen famous styles of wine: the land, the grapes, the barrels, the bottle. It is usually far less than the price on the shelf.

Oak barrels in a stone cellar with a bottle and a glass
A glass of red wine on a mossy stone wall beside an autumn vineyard, with a church spire in the mist Burgundy

Burgundy grand cru (Pinot Noir)

$48–$283 to make one bottle

A Pinot Noir from one of the top-ranked vineyards of Burgundy. The plots are tiny and each vine gives very little wine.

 A glass of deep red wine and a bowl of plums on a kitchen table, with old vines outside the window Bordeaux

Pomerol micro-estate (Merlot)

$29–$101 to make one bottle

A Merlot from a tiny estate in Pomerol, on some of the most expensive land in Bordeaux.

 A glass of red wine on a small barrel in a candle-lit stone cellar Burgundy

Burgundy premier cru

$22–$98 to make one bottle

A Burgundy from a vineyard one step below the very top rank.

 A decanter and a glass of red wine on a white tablecloth in a panelled dining room Bordeaux

Bordeaux first growth

$28–$95 to make one bottle

A red from one of the five top-ranked estates of Bordeaux. Every barrel is new, the grapes are picked by hand, and the wine waits more than a year and a half before bottling.

 A glass of golden sparkling wine on a marble mantelpiece in front of a gilt mirror Champagne

Champagne prestige cuvée

$26–$89 to make one bottle

The top bottle of a big Champagne house. It is made from the best grapes, aged six to ten years, and sold in a heavy bottle and a smart box.

 A glass of brick-red wine on an old cask in a brick cellar of very large oak casks Piedmont

Barolo single-cru

$21–$82 to make one bottle

A top Barolo from one famous vineyard in north-west Italy. It is made from the Nebbiolo grape and rests for more than three years before it is sold.

 A glass of dark red wine on a winery terrace above vineyards and golden hills at sunset Napa Valley

Napa cult Cabernet

$26–$80 to make one bottle

A small-production Cabernet Sauvignon from the best land in Napa Valley, sold mostly to a private mailing list.

 A glass of dark red wine on a terrace wall in a very steep vineyard above a wide river Rhône

Northern Rhône single-vineyard Syrah

$21–$70 to make one bottle

A Syrah from the steep terraces of Hermitage or Côte-Rôtie in the northern Rhône. Farmed by hand, a few thousand bottles a year.

 A glass of red wine on a stone balustrade in front of a country house and vineyards Bordeaux

Bordeaux classified growth (2nd–5th)

$17–$61 to make one bottle

A red from one of the ranked estates of Bordeaux, from the second tier down to the fifth.

 A glass of mellow red wine and a plate of lamb chops in a stone archway above a Spanish hill town Rioja

Rioja gran reserva

$14–$53 to make one bottle

The longest-aged kind of Rioja. The land and the grapes are cheap. The cost is in keeping the wine for five years or more before selling it.

 A glass of sparkling wine and a plate of cheese puffs on the zinc counter of an old bistro Champagne

Champagne vintage / house blend

$16–$50 to make one bottle

A Champagne from a single good year, or a house’s best blend, aged three to five years before sale.

 A glass of red wine on a table at the end of an avenue of cypress trees near the sea Tuscany

Bolgheri super Tuscan

$16–$47 to make one bottle

A flagship red from the Tuscan coast, made from Bordeaux grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon instead of Italian ones.

 A glass of pale white wine on a slate wall in a steep vineyard above a river bend Mosel

Mosel steep-slope Riesling (Prädikat)

$14–$47 to make one bottle

Riesling from slate slopes so steep that every job is done by hand. Much of it is sweet and made in tiny amounts.

 Two glasses of sparkling wine and a plate of oysters on a picnic table on a foggy coast California sparkling (Carneros, Anderson Valley)

California traditional-method sparkling

$13–$44 to make one bottle

Bubbles made the Champagne way on the cool California coast, from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, aged two to five years before sale.

 A glass of dark red wine, work gloves and pruning shears on a crate beside vineyard rows at sunset Napa Valley

Napa premium Cabernet (purchased fruit)

$14–$43 to make one bottle

A good Napa Cabernet Sauvignon from a winery that buys its grapes instead of owning the vineyard.

 A glass of light red wine on a mossy stump beside a vineyard, with fir trees in the mist Oregon (Willamette Valley)

Oregon Pinot Noir (Willamette single vineyard)

$15–$43 to make one bottle

A Pinot Noir from one vineyard in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, made the way Burgundy is but on far cheaper land.

Per bottle at the winery door, before anyone adds a margin or tax. Our models are built in US dollars and shown in your chosen currency. These are our estimates for a typical winery of each kind.

All sixteen side by side
  • Burgundy grand cru (Pinot Noir)$283
  • Pomerol micro-estate (Merlot)$101
  • Burgundy premier cru$97.5
  • Bordeaux first growth$95
  • Champagne prestige cuvée$89.2
  • Barolo single-cru$82.1
  • Napa cult Cabernet$80
  • Northern Rhône single-vineyard Syrah$69.5
  • Bordeaux classified growth (2nd–5th)$61.5
  • Rioja gran reserva$53.4
  • Champagne vintage / house blend$49.9
  • Bolgheri super Tuscan$47.1
  • Mosel steep-slope Riesling (Prädikat)$46.7
  • California traditional-method sparkling$43.8
  • Napa premium Cabernet (purchased fruit)$43.1
  • Oregon Pinot Noir (Willamette single vineyard)$42.9

US$ per 75 cl bottle at the winery gate, top of each model's range · Corkonomics cost model

Try your own numbers

Each box has a low and a high figure. Start from one of the styles below, change something, and the cost of a bottle updates.

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How we worked it out

Land is an imputed cost — the value of the vineyard times a cost of capital, divided by the bottles a hectare yields — never a purchase price. Vineyard operations per hectare are divided by bottles per hectare. Barrels are amortised over their uses and weighted by the share of new oak. Aging carries a cellar cost per year and financing on the cash already spent. Bottle, closure, label, case, bottling and overhead are per-bottle inputs. Every input has a low and a high and the result is a range. Full methodology →