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 the scarcity score means

One number from 0 to 100 that describes supply: how hard a wine-vintage is likely to be to find. It is not a rating of quality.

A hand pulling a bottle from a wine rack

Published 3 September 2026 · Reviewed September 2026 · Corkonomics editorial ·

Scarcity asks one question: how many bottles of this vintage are probably left? Corkonomics starts from the number of bottles made, assumes a share is drunk every year, and adjusts for bottle size and the producer's standing. A high score means few bottles are likely left. It says nothing about whether a wine is good or fairly priced.

How it is built

Starts from the production figure (reported where the producer publishes it, estimated from vineyard area and typical yield otherwise), shrinks it by an age-based consumption curve of about 3% a year for the first fifteen years and slower after, then adjusts for bottle size (large formats are rarer) and for the producer's market standing (a scarce wine nobody collects is not scarce in the market sense). A young wine from a large estate scores low; an old wine from a tiny domaine scores high.

A single bottle left in a large, dusty, empty wine rack

What a blank means

If no production figure exists at all, the score is blank and the page says why. Corkonomics does not guess a production number in order to produce a score.

What it is not

Not a measure of how easily the wine trades, not a valuation, and not advice. Ease of trading and price depend on a market Corkonomics does not yet hold licensed data for; when it does, those figures will appear with their own labels.

Reading level
No prior knowledge assumed
What this is
Education, not advice
Part of
The Corkonomics Learn series
Last reviewed: September 2026Report an error on this page

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