FAQs
Please find below the FAQs to investing in fine wine. If you have a question that isn’t included here, please get in touch.
Q. Where is my wine stored?
A. Your wine is stored in the renowned Octavian Cellars in Corsham, Wiltshire. It’s stored in perfect conditions with constant temperature controls, which means that it will have an excellent provenance and therefore command the best value when the time comes to sell.
Q. How do I know the wine is what I have paid for?
A. When your wine reaches the bonded warehouse it is checked with regard to both the wine and also the original wooden case from the Chateau.
Q. How much does the storage and insurance cost?
A. After the first year in bond, which is paid for within our initial commission, storage and insurance cost approximately £15 per annum.
Q. How well is it insured?
A. The insurance on your wine is provided by AXA Group and covers full replacement value at the time of any incident.
Q. Does wine ever go down in value?
A. Naturally, there are examples of individual wines dipping in value over the short term. However, provided you stick to buying wines from the very best Chateaux and from the best vintages there will always be an upward trend on their value over the longer term. Consumption reduces the supply and the wine improves with age, increasing relative demand.
Q. Can I be confident that your company won’t go bust?
A. One of the benefits of investing in this way is that you don’t invest in Vinance but in the wine itself, so your money is perfectly secure.
Q. Is this kind of investment really tax-free?
A. Storing your wine in bond means that there is no VAT or import duty to pay if you are based in the UK. We also sell all our clients’ wine in bond so there is no tax to pay on the sale. We keep a close eye on the expected maturity dates of the wine we trade so that they will always qualify as wasting assets, and therefore attracts no capital gains tax. For further guidance from HM Revenue & Customs, please visit http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/bulletins/tb42.htm
Q. What is the minimum investment that you expect?
A. There is no minimum investment. Classified wines can be bought for as little as a few hundred pounds per case, however the top performing wines including the Premier Crus will cost on average £2,000 - £10,000+ per case, depending on the vintage.
Q. How long do I have to hold onto the wine to make a decent profit?
A. We’d recommend that you hold onto your wine for a minimum of 3 – 5 years, although many of our clients will look to keep their wine for much longer to make even more profit.
Q. What happens when I want to sell my wine?
A. As soon as we receive your written instruction to sell your wine, we guarantee to sell it for the prevailing market price and send you a cheque for the full amount of its value.