"The stock market went down today, but my wines went up"

One pickup line I could use (if I weren’t married and had a lot of extra money): “My portfolio? Well it’s currently 25% bonds, 45% stocks, 20% cash, and 10% wine.” Starting August 1 you can invest in The Fine Wine Fund, minimum investment of £50,000. There is a 2% management fee and a 15% performance fee. Details of the fund at their website:

The Fine Wine Fund has been established as an association in the UK with the objective of achieving long-term double digit annual returns for its membership through the joint ownership of a large fine wine cellar.

Sine the 1980s the WAM Fine Wine Index has outperformed major global equity and bond indices. Whilst the equity indices do not reflect total return owing to the omission of dividends, this still represents a favourable comparison. … There appears to be little correlation between fine wine performance on the one hand and equity and bond performance on the other. This suggests that fine wine as an investment can be viewed as a genuine form of diversification.

The graph below shows how the WAM Fine Wine Index has done over the years. Having just sold about 200 bottles from my collection, I can vouch for increasing value over time for some of these wines. I wish I had the extra cash to burn… or sip…



Top photo courtesy of Chateau Haut- Brion. Graph from The Fine Wine Fund.