There’s a chap here I don’t much like. Let’s call him Roger, a smug know-all. The other day he was holding forth about his recent investments ... in wine. “Beats the stock market,” he told us. “That’s as long as you know what you’re doing. Look at that Chateau d’Yquem sold in London the other day. Went for £55,000 ...” 

Frankly, I’m not sure Roger does know what he’s doing. He made his money in motor insurance and came to wine after exchanging Chiswick for the Côte d’Azur. Okay, there are some impressive figures around. According to one expert, “£10,000 put into a wine portfolio in 1966 would now be worth over £1.25 million.”

But there’s a snag: fake wines are now joining fake watches and fake perfumes as traps for the unwary. According to a leading authority at Sotheby’s, “Most of the best wines were finished 25 years ago ... and now they’re on the market again.” As counterfeits, of course. To recognise a fake, you need a detailed knowledge of bottles and labels ... and when it comes to tasting, I fancy, a better palate than Roger’s.

From Reporter 115 - June/July 2006

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