Heading for Burgundy drought? 2005 Joseph Drouhin Chambertin-Clos de Bèze can become even more attractive

For the new wine connoisseur, neither Domaine Joseph Drouhin nor Chambertin-Clos de Bèze are new names, and for the wine enthusiast, these are two powerful names. Now you have the opportunity to invest in the 2005 vintage of Clos de Bèze and from Drouhin. A classic case of Burgundy, where high quality and extremely limited production face a wine market where the scarcity of good Burgundies seems only to become even more far-reaching in the future. Dive into both wine and potential in this article. 

World-Renowned Joseph Drouhin For Four Generations

Joseph Drouhin today owns more than 80 hectares on some of the best sites in Burgundy. Everything from Grand Cru in the south to Chablis in the north. All the vineyards are tended with great respect for the local environment, and most are treated according to biodynamic prescriptions. The family has been at the helm for the last four generations, for more than 140 years. 

Chambertin-Clos De Bèze In The Absolute Top

For Drouhin, their Chambertin-Clos De Bèze has always been considered one of their absolute top wines. They only own 0.13 hectares of the vineyard, but in 2005 had the opportunity to buy fruit from one of the neighbours in the vineyard, which allowed for a slightly larger amount of wine to work with.   

Quality In Extremely Small Quantities

When it comes to red Grand Cru from Burgundy, the directives prescribe a production of 35-37 hectoliters per hectare. Drouhin owns 0.13 hectares at Clos de Bèze, which with a yield of 35 hl/ha, since it is assumed that a good producer like Drouhin keeps yields down to improve quality, yields 600 bottles per year. 600 bottles are extremely small quantities, and even if Drouhin in the 2005 vintage Chambertin-Clos de Bèze has bought grapes from its neighbour to increase quantities, an educated guess for a total production would be around 2,000 bottles - well, in a worst case scenario.   

Even 2,000 bottles are vanishingly small with the enormous thirst for the best of Burgundy.  

"The Best She Has Ever Made"

The quality of 2005 Chambertin-Clos de Bèze is described by Véronique Drouhin as exceptional, which is also supported by a statement from the domain's oenologist Laurence Jobard, who says that 2005 is the best vintage she has ever made. And she has been in the game for many years, which only underlines the quality of this particular one.     

Scores from Burghound, Wine Advocate and Vinous show that the opinion has held up. Indeed, the 2005 vintage scores 94.7 points on average across the three and a whopping 96 points from Wine Advocate. The highest score given to this particular wine is 96 points for the 2016 vintage from Burghound and 97 points for the 2015 from Wine Advocate. The 2005 vintage is thus among the top of all Chambertin-Clos de Bèze from Drouhin.   

Burgundy Prevailed In 2021

Liv-ex has released its annual report for 2021, and the year has been particularly good for Burgundy where liquidity has once again set a record. In addition, the share of Burgundy wine traded on Liv-ex (measured by value) last year was 21.4 % of the total value, beating the record set in 2019 when the figure was 19.7 %. In other words, Burgundy wines are in high demand and turnover.    

The report also comments on the fact that more and more wines and producers are reaching the secondary market for fine wine. In just 10 years, the number of unique wines traded on Liv-ex has increased sevenfold, while the price of Burgundy wine has continued to rise. The price of Burgundy wine has therefore not been affected by the increase in the supply of other quality wines, which only underlines the uniqueness of Burgundy wines.    

At RareWine Invest, 2021 has also been a great year for Burgundy, with an overall return of just under 19%. 

Great Wines In Small Quantities

There is no doubt that the level in Burgundy is extremely high. At the same time, the sparse quantities seem to dominate and create competition for the existing quantities of the lucrative Burgundy wine.   

Indeed, the 2021 harvest is historically low due to spring night frosts. This also means that in the coming years we could be looking into a Burgundy drought that means surrounding vintages will be in high demand. The first ratings for 2020 are starting to tick in and the picture is clear: High quality and low volumes. This means sky-high prices and if the wine market continues as usual, this will have a positive impact on the price of wines already on the market.  

This comes, moreover, in the wake of a number of years in which the trend seems to be for quality to increase while quantities decrease. An attractive environment for the wine investor.   

Power 100 And Untapped Drouhin Potential

Once again, this year, Drouhin is on Liv-ex's Power 100 list. However, as number 48 against the 2020 list's 23rd place. Liv-ex describes in the Power 100 article that prices of Burgundy wines peaked in 2020 and came to a stagnation. However, the 2021 report states that Burgundy is back, and rising prices have set one all-time high on Liv-ex's Burgundy 150 index after the other during 2021.  

Drouhin prices also took a hit, while prices across Drouhin wines have not kept pace with the region over the past year. Although the rank on the Power 100 list has fallen, Drouhin is still in the upper half. With the prospect of lower supply in the future and demand seemingly inexhaustible, all indications are that there is untapped potential in Drouhin. It is the right name, wine from the right vineyard and towering quality.  

Rarewine Invest's Opinion

We have been advocating Burgundy for a long time and we recommend having 40 % Burgundy in the portfolio – that is how we believe this category is. The 2005 Joseph Drouhin Chambertin-Clos de Bèze has it all. A strong and talented world-renowned producer behind it, great scores, and small volumes.   

Furthermore, all indications are that we are looking directly into a Burgundy drought that could further increase demand for existing wines. There is untapped potential for all the money in this great wine from Drouhin. We recommend acting quickly - quantities are as a result of the extremely small production very limited. 

According to Burghound, there is a minimum of 30 years of positive evolution in this wine.