Amarone at auction. The latest data

Business 16 November 2016 Aldo Fiordelli

The word “volatility” when talking about winemaking, gives wine producers a start, it isn’t well received by financial analysts either. The volatility of the figures of Amarone at auction, highlighted in the table, hides however a growing image, interest and even identity. We have used the two most-sold wines as a reference: Quintarelli and Dal Forno. However, the important presence of Bertani should be underlined for the oldest vintages, and more occasionally Masi and Allegrini.

Quintarelli and Dal Forno in command

The two producers taken as a reference are lacking those vintages considered to be of absolute excellence, despite the fact that, scrolling down the hammer prices, the 1990 for Quintarelli and the 1997 for Dal Forno seem to stand out. This is due to the very nature of Amarone which, being produced with dried grapes, connects a good vintage to quantity, with the result that the best vintages are also those mostly readily available. But let’s take a look at the numbers. In four years, both Dal Forno and Quintarelli have recorded a slight decrease: -12% for the first and -6% for the second one.

Talking of numbers…

Dal Forno has grown by 8% in the past year, whereas Quintarelli has dropped by 46% (although 2016 isn’t over yet and so the average is calculated on fewer adjudications and the autumnal auction season is no less important than the spring one). The second figure stands out and should be taken in the context of an adjustment compared to the +85% exploit of the previous year. Also Dal Forno gained +37% in 2015, coming from -41% in 2014 compared to 2013.

Amarone at auction: the evolution

The reason for this volatility lies in structural reasons. Amarone della Valpolicella is quite a young designation for the auction market compared to Barolo or Brunello. Just think that until last year, Christie’s still put lots under the hammer with titles such as “Veneto” or “Mixed Italian red wines”, together with Chianti Classico and others. Collectors were still trying to build their own parameters in terms of risk reduction strategy on producers and vintages. The auction market now seems to have accepted these two wines for themselves. As for Quintarelli, in 2015 several lots of 1990 went under the hammer, now recognised as one of the best vintages, reaching an average price of 716 dollars a bottle and a peak price of up to 1,327 dollars a bottle.