Wine prices can reach height very few of us can even conceive for 750 milliliters of fermented grape juice.
Why is this?
Wine is the finest food
Arguably, wine is one of the very finest and most complex food humans have ever produced. It is a subtle alchemy between the vines, the terroir they are grown on (where they come from, learn more at what’s terroir?), a grape variety, and winemaking techniques.
For the finest wines, the resulting savoir-faire, and the subsequent balance found is wine have been perfected for several centuries by passionate vignerons analyzing vintage after vintage how to produce better quality with what nature provides.
Supply and Demand for Wine
That said, wine prices are not an absolute reflection of the complexity, balance, or more generally the quality of what’s inside a bottle.
More pragmatically, wine prices are the result of supply and demand for an individual cuvée.
Wines that are considered, or judged by critics as more desirable, spark off more demand. When these wines are scarce, prices can go upwards and reach extremely high level as for the 50 wines listed below.
The Top 50 most expensive wine list below ordered by decreasing average per 750ml-bottle is composed of: 32 Burgundy wines (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay), 11 sweet Mosel Riesling wines, 2 Bordeaux wines, 3 Prestige cuvée Champagne, 1 Napa Valley red, and 1 vintage Portugese Port.
All are confidential productions, rare wines praised by many wine collectors around the world.
Watch the Story of the Most Expensive Wine Ever Sold in Video
Top 10 Most Expensive Wines in the World
Let’s start off with the 10 most expensive wines:
1 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $15,961
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
2 – Egon Muller Scharzhofberger Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Mosel, Germany
Average Price USD: $10,641
Grape Variety: Riesling
3 – Domaine Leroy Musigny Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $8,417
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
4 – Domaine Leflaive Montrachet Grand Cru, Côte de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $7,894
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
5 – Domaine Georges & Christophe Roumier Musigny Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $7,204
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
6 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Montrachet Grand Cru, Côte de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $5,718
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
7 – Joh. Jos. Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Mosel, Germany
Average Price USD: $5,015
Grape Variety: Riesling
8 – Domaine Leroy Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $4,397
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
9 – Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese Goldkapsel, Mosel, Germany
Average Price USD: $3,928
Grape Variety: Riesling
10 – Leroy Domaine d’Auvenay Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $3,943
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
See the TOP 10 Most Expensive Wines in Video
What is the most expensive bottle of wine in the world?
On 28th February 2007, a large-format bottle of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, a Jeroboam from one of the greatest vintages in History, 1945 was sold for $310,700 by Sotheby’s in New York.
In 1997, a bottle of this same wine was sold by Christie’s in London for $114,614.
For reference, standard 750ml bottle of 1945 are currently available for sale at an average price at over $13,000 per bottle.
Top 50 Most Expensive Wines in the World
Below are the other 40 most expensive wines globally ordered by decreasing price:
11 – Domaine Leroy Richebourg Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $3,874
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
12 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche Grand Cru Monopole, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $3,659
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
13 – Staatsweingut Kloster Eberbach Erbacher Steinberger Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Rheingau, Germany
Average Price USD: $3,645
Grape Variety: Riesling
14 – Graf von Schonborn-Schloss Schonborn Erbacher Marcobrunn Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Rheingau, Germany
Average Price USD: $3,538
Grape Variety: Riesling
15 – Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, Côte de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $3,407
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
16 – Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair La Romanée Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $3,336
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
17 – Egon Muller Scharzhofberger Riesling Beerenauslese, Mosel, Germany
Average Price USD: $3,274
Grape Variety: Riesling
18 – Domaine Leroy Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $3,109
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
19 – Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA
Average Price USD: $3,075
Grape Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
20 – Domaine Faiveley Musigny Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $2,943
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
21 – Taylor Fladgate Scion Vintage Port, Portugal
Average Price USD: $2,930
Grape Variety: Portuguese Port Blend
22 – Petrus, Pomerol, France
Average Price USD: $2,876
Grape Variety: Merlot
23 – Le Pin, Pomerol, France
Average Price USD: $2,779
Grape Variety: Merlot
24 – Domaine Leroy Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, Côte de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $2,768
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
25 – Boerl & Kroff Brut, Champagne, France
Average Price USD: $2,708
Grape Varieties: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier
26 – Egon Muller Scharzhofberger Riesling Eiswein, Mosel, Germany
Average Price USD: $2,584
Grape Variety: Riesling
27 – Domaine Leroy Clos de la Roche Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $2,552
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
28 – Staatsweingut Kloster Eberbach Rudesheimer Berg Rottland Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Rheingau, Germany
Average Price USD: $2,537
Grape Variety: Riesling
29 – Domaine Leroy Latricières-Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $2,403
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
31 – Domaine Bernard Dugat-Py Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $2,256
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
32 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $2,237
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
33 – Domaine Dujac Chambertin Grand Cru, Cotes de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $2,086
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
34 – J.F. Coche-Dury Meursault-Perrières Premier Cru, Cote de Beaune France
Average Price USD: $2,077
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
35 – Domaine Leroy Corton-Renardes Grand Cru, Côte de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $2,059
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
36 – Dr. von Bassermann-Jordan Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Pfalz, Germany
Average Price USD: $1,993
Grape Variety: Riesling
37 – Domaine Leroy Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,937
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
38 – Domaine Sylvain Cathiard et Fils Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,931
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
39 – Domaine G. Roumier Amoureuses Premier Cru, Chambolle-Musigny, France
Average Price USD: $1,893
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
40 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,851
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
41 – Schloss Vollrads Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Rheingau, Germany
Average Price USD: $1,851
Grape Variety: Riesling
42 – Domaine Ramonet Montrachet Grand Cru, Côte de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $1,789
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
43 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands Échezeaux Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,778
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
44 – Dom Perignon P3 Plénitude Brut, Champagne, France
Average Price USD: $1,699
Grape Variety: Champagne Blend
45 – DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Échezeaux Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,625
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
46 – Domaine des Comtes Lafon Montrachet Grand Cru, Cote de Beaune, France
Average Price USD: $1,616
Grape Variety: Chardonnay
47 – Staatsweingut Kloster Eberbach Rauenthaler Baiken Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Rheingau, Germany
Average Price USD: $1,606
Grape Variety: Riesling
48 – Emmanuel Rouget Cros Parantoux, Vosne-Romanee Premier Cru, France
Average Price USD: $1,571
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
49 – Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,541
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
50 – Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin Clos-de-Bèze Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France
Average Price USD: $1,429
Grape Variety: Pinot Noir
This list of the Top 50 most expensive wines in the world was from the biggest wine price database in the world at Wine-Searcher.com as per October 2017, you can see the original list here.
Other Top Most-Expensive Wine Lists To Explore:
If you’re interested in wine prices, you should also check out our 8 Things You Should Know about Investing in Wine.
This is the detail about how the list is calculated given by Wine-Searcher: “The list is based on the average price of a standard bottle (750ml). To be included in the list, a wine must have at least 5 offers spanning at least four vintages (two of which must have been in the last 10 years). Wine styles that are not typically released on a year-by-year basis are excluded from this rule – this includes Champagne, Madeira, Port, Vin Santo, Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein. Special bottlings – such as the Penfolds Ampoule – are also excluded from the list.”
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