2009 Cristal MAG: +74.6% In 3.5 Years, But Potential Lies Ahead

Welcome Back, 2009 Cristal On Magnum

If you're a Champagne investor looking for validated, big potential, there are a handful of wines you cannot overlook. One of them is Louis Roederer's prestige cuvée Cristal, which in addition to being one of the wine world's great super brands, is also a benchmark against which other great Champagnes are measured.

Cristal manages to endear and attract cultural elite connoisseurs, while also cutting a fabulous figure in pop culture with nightclubs, fashionable lifestyles and whatnot.

We have successfully obtained a batch of 2009 Cristal in magnums for you to add or start your wine portfolio with. About 3.5 years ago we were able to offer 2009 Cristal on magnum for the first time. Since then, the price has increased by 74.6%, but looking at when the wine matures, availability, demand and the price of comparable older vintages, the real potential is still in the future.

Interested in the full story on Cristal? Read our profile here: The Myth Of Cristal: Crystal Clear, Exclusive And Tamper-Proof

Summary: What's Been Happening With Cristal Lately?

Cristal as a whole is undoubtedly popular, but it's not just as an investment case here at RareWine Invest - Cristal is highly sought after, and Liv-ex even mentions Cristal in their Power 100 2022 list as the cornerstone and foundation of the entire Champagne category's performance in the secondary market.

Something else worth noting is that only three Champagnes/brands are to be found in the 2022 list's top 10: Krug in 10th place. Cristal (Louis Roederer) in 7th place and Dom Pérignon in 6th place.

The list is ranked on the basis of a calculation including price performance, trading activity measured in both value and volume, unit prices and over-all brand score.

Cristal, which in 2021 climbed from a ranking of number 10 to 9 and is now ranked number 7, was in 2022 the most traded wine at Liv-ex in terms of volume and the 3rd most traded wine in terms of value.

In short: Cristal is in demand, there is high trading activity, and it is not just a passing phenomenon.

Mediocre Cristal? And Among The Very Best

Speaking of Cristal, it's almost blasphemous to include "mediocre" in the terminology, and it's also done here with a respectful twinkle in the eye.

If we take the average of scores across Champagne guru Richard Juhlin, Wine Advocate and Vinous on the last 10 released vintages of Cristal, the 2009 vintage actually belongs at the bottom along with the 2007 and 2005. Quite crazy with 96 points on average:

Digging a little deeper, however, in addition to Cristal's stable high level of quality, there is an interesting observation to make about the 2009 vintage. Champagne specialist Richard Juhlin has given the 2009 vintage 97 points, which has only been surpassed once among the above 10 vintages (the 2002 vintage with 98 points). Richard Juhlin thus rates the quality of the 2009 vintage on a par with the 2008 vintage, but also with older legendary vintages such as 1996 and 1988, which have also been awarded 97 points.

Generally speaking, Cristal Champagne is among the world's best, although the 2009 vintage "only" scores 96 points on average. However, the world's most specialised Champagne critic considers the 2009 vintage to be among the best Cristal releases in recent times.

Cristal Has Delivered Solid Returns To Champagne Investors

As mentioned above, investors who invested in the 2009 Cristal MAG the first time we were able to offer it for investment have enjoyed a return of 74.6%.

Looking at the broader picture, the story is not much different. According to Liv-ex, the last 10 vintages that have been on the market for a minimum of five years* have yielded an average return of 94.5% over the last five years, which equates to 14.3% in average annual returns.

*2009, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1999, 1997, 1996. The 2008 vintage is not included as it has not yet been on the market for five years/was released after 2009.

The Price Has Never Been Higher. But Dare To Wait?

The price of a 2009 Cristal MAG has never been higher. And perhaps we're looking into a period where price increases will be less explosive. Or maybe we won't. The question is, how long do you dare wait? Right now, the 2009 vintage is available, and as time goes on, this one is just approaching its optimal drinking window and becoming even more sought after, and in the meantime the supply is steadily reducing. mature Champagne is expensive. Mature Cristal in magnums seven more, as the table above attests. If history repeats itself, and often it does, the 2009 vintage will be even more expensive than it is today.

But according to Wine Advocate and Vinous, it should be drunk before 2040 and 2049 respectively, if you ask them. If they were ordinary bottles... This is about magnums, which have an even longer life ahead of them.

Rarewine Invest’s Opinion

When it comes to investing, as an investor, regardless of the asset, you should never expect guarantees. Yet here's one: Cristal was awesome yesterday, it's awesome today, and it will continue to be awesome in the future.

Cristal is a mishmash of exclusive brand, extravaganza, fine culture and consistent, towering quality that attracts all levels of audiences from the wine world. Whether you're a nightclub-goer, wine critic, rapper, businessman or general bon vivant, a bottle of Cristal is always cool. And a magnum bottle is just twice as cool.

The quality is there, the demand is there, and the historical data is there. It's really just a matter of whether you believe in the Cristal case, the general Champagne case and how long you dare to wait.