Bordeaux wine merchants

For centuries, the Bordeaux trading houses have been a major economic and financial force known as the “Place de Bordeaux”. This activity developed during the 11th century with the expansion of the wine trade between Bordeaux and England. In those days, most of the wines were sold in bulk at the heart of the estate, then matured in the cellars of the wine merchants who then handled the sales. Historically located in the heart of the Chartrons district, the warehouses of these merchants generally originated from England or Scandinavia and stretched along the quays of the Garonne. The offices and private mansions built in front represented one of Europe’s finest 18th-century urban architectural ensembles.

Today, the Gironde wine trade handles around 70% of Bordeaux wine sales and distributes its products worldwide, in over 170 countries. We now have 300 trading houses in Bordeaux. The Bordeaux wine trade is made up of different sizes and types of company. Houses can be distinguished by the type of wines they distribute: prestigious crus, châteaux wines, branded wines, generic wines… Distribution networks can be used to characterize them: private individuals, wine merchants, cafés-hôtel-restaurants (CHR), mass retail, export… Nevertheless, the sector remains highly condensed, with around thirty long-established houses accounting for 70% of sales.

For example, in 2020, 92 million hectolitres of Bordeaux wines will be sold, down 5% on 2019. That’s the equivalent of 522 million bottles worth 3.5 billion euros, down 12% on the previous year. Despite a global context disrupted by the health crisis, Bordeaux wines remain France’s leading AOC vineyard, both nationally and internationally.

The role of traders

The merchant’s role is multi-faceted, as a selector and creator of taste. He is in charge of marketing the selected crus, i.e. the grands crus or wines bottled at the château by the winemaker. In particular, he is in charge of wine production. It assembles, maintains and presents wines under its own brand name. This guarantees unique expertise for consumers and frequent supply to distributors.

As a result, wine merchants need to know how markets and techniques evolve in order to establish long-term partnerships with châteaux and their estates. Last but not least, the Gironde wine trade is a key player in the primeur market, as it financially carries the stocks of wines from the latest vintage of crus classés, which will be aged in the heart of the châteaux for a period of 18 to 24 months.