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When businessman Bruno Conci and wife, Roz, bought a 12th-century vineyard estate
near Siena in Italy 23 years ago, they had no idea that they would one day sell
their boutique Chianti Classico wine to high-end establishments around the world,
including The Savoy hotel in London.
Once owned by the Vatican, the property was in need of substantial refurbishment.
The couple saw the purchase as an exciting project and aimed to create a beautiful
place to live and to produce enough wine for themselves, family and friends.
But with each successful stage of the estate’s restoration came a growing desire
to improve the quality of the wine. After years of hard work and millions of euros,
their 100-hectare estate now boasts olive groves, vineyards and apartments popular
with wine tourists.
For those thinking of buying a vineyard, such success can only add to the appeal.
“Demand has gathered pace in the past five years,” says Knight Frank’s Bill Thomson,
who sells vineyards in Italy. “We receive about 20 enquiries a year – the number
is growing.”
The Conci’s success is not uncommon, but experiences vary.
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For every handful of triumphs, many aspiring winemakers end up with broken dreams
and a financial hangover. “It does require a certain sort of person,” says Mr Thomson.
“I’ve known buyers to sell up when they realise the effort required.”
One of the simplest ways to experience the vineyard life without the heartache is
to buy a property on one of the growing number of fully serviced luxury residential
vineyard schemes around the world. The resident’s level of involvement varies from
one development to the next: with one scheme, you might simply receive an annual
allocation of bottles; in another, you might design your own label and work with
the production team.
Most wealthy vineyard owners can be split into two groups. The majority are lifestyle
buyers looking for a holiday house with a few hectares of vines – in France, about
70% of vineyard sales are to people from outside the industry. Then there are those
who want to produce on a larger scale. These range from film stars to Chinese industrialists.
Of course, a grey area between the two also exists. As the viticulture bug bites,
more owners like the Concis turn a hobby into something serious.
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But most experts agree that lifestyle vineyard purchases should be seen as just
that – lifestyle purchases. Any success above and beyond making a palatable wine
for you, your friends and perhaps a small distribution network should be viewed
as a bonus.
Vineyard values vary enormously, but the new Knight Frank Vineyard Index (overleaf)
shows what your money can buy. The majority of the value of many lifestyle vineyard
properties in Europe will be largely tied up in the main house, meaning prices will
move in line with residential markets rather than the value of the vines.
But the overall prices can also be affected by commercial vineyard land values, says Mr
Thomson, and these move in line with bulk wine prices. Although areas producing
the best quality wines experience less volatility, bulk wine price moves are likely
to affect the property value of boutique wineries.
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Those looking for a blank canvas can buy huge parcels of cheap land in New World
wine regions, such as Chile and Argentina, where building costs are low and there
are few planning restrictions.
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Chile arguably offers the world’s most diverse terroirs, with huge scope to develop
an estate meeting the owner’s exact requirements, says Matt Ridgway, director of
consultancy Chile Investments. “Adventurous, aspiring winemakers have started to
take advantage only recently,” he says.
Though there are many potential pitfalls, the upsides to owning a vineyard are many.
Aside from spending balmy evenings with friends, sampling straight-from-the-barrel
Syrah, many boutique winemakers also like to organise wine tastings and pitch to
restaurants.
Mr Thomson says the outlook for these producers is promising: “There is a lot of
mediocre wine produced in large quantities. The successes will be the boutique operators.”
For those tempted, Mr Conci, 71, has decided to sell his estate*, but his advice
will be close at hand. He plans to spend his retirement in a former monastery in
the area and use his discerning palate to monitor the wines he helped establish.