【英语生活】亚洲藏家不看好2011年份顶级葡萄酒

Why buy a wine that has to sit in a cellar for years when you can purchase one that's older, cheaper and ready to drink right now?

For wine lovers, especially Asian ones, the answer is simple: You don't.

Wine collectors around the world are snubbing the most recent vintage from top Bordeaux producers in the en primeur market, where wines are sold while they're still in the barrel and won't be bottled and delivered for another two years. A collector who buys on the en primeur market for his or her cellar will typically wait several years to allow the wine to develop before drinking.

The lack of demand in this year's en primeur market is in stark contrast to the previous two years. The 2009 and 2010 vintages garnered gushing reviews and attracted collectors, including many first-time buyers from Asia who have come to make up as much as 40% of the en primeur market, up from just a tiny fraction five years ago.

But this year, the 2011 wines were given mediocre reviews and are languishing unsold. Wine merchants say even the most devoted wine lovers can't find a reason to buy when older vintages are more economical.

Consider this example: A case of 2011 Château Haut-Brion is selling at £3,800 ($5845) by Farr Vintners, a wine merchant with offices with London and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, a case of 1996 wine from the same producer can be had for £3,450.

'The en primeur season has been miserable,' said Jo Purcell, managing director at Farr Vintners in Hong Kong. 'There's no incentive to buy a not-so-great vintage of a wine that you can't touch for years when the older wines are cheaper.'

Jason Chow

Reuters
如果你能买到一瓶年份更早、价格更低且马上能喝的葡萄酒，为什么还要去买那种得在酒窖里藏上几年才能饮用的葡萄酒呢？

对于葡萄酒爱好者，尤其是亚洲的葡萄酒爱好者来说，答案很简单：不买。

全球葡萄酒藏家在期酒市场上都在冷落波尔多顶级酒庄最近一年酿造的葡萄酒。在期酒市场出售的葡萄酒都还在酒桶中酿造，离装瓶交付还有两年的时间就被拿到期酒市场上出售了。在期酒市场上买酒的藏家通常会把酒在酒窖里藏上数年，等到口感最好的时候才取出来饮用。

今年期酒市场需求不振的状况和前两年形成了鲜明对比。2009和2010的年份葡萄酒获得了众多好评，也吸引了大量藏家，其中包括许多首次购买期酒的亚洲藏家。亚洲藏家在期酒市场所占比例高达40%，五年前这一比例还微不足道。

但今年，2011年份葡萄酒反响平平，销售行情不佳。酒商说，在买年份更早的葡萄酒更划算的情况下，即使是最忠实的葡萄酒爱好者也找不到购买2011年份葡萄酒的理由。

想想看：在酒商Farr Vintners购买一箱奥比昂酒庄(Chateau Haut-Brion) 的2011年份葡萄酒需要3,800英镑（约合5,845美元）。与此同时，同一酒庄出品的一箱1996年份葡萄酒要价只要3,450英镑。Farr Vintners在伦敦和香港设有办事处。

Farr Vintners驻香港的董事总经理珀塞尔(Jo Purcell)说，这一季的期酒市场行情很差。在年份更早的葡萄酒更便宜的情况下，谁也没有动力去买那些评价一般且要等几年才能饮用的年份酒。

Jason Chow

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