The best wine advisers can help high-net-worth clients navigate the enticing yet complex world of fine wine.
With the help of a trusted adviser, buyers, collectors and sellers can confidently explore rare vintages, upcoming vineyards, and everything in between. An experienced wine adviser can help a client connect the dots, introducing them to rare bottles, informing them of gaps in their collection, and advising on the very best bottles to buy for collection – or personal enjoyment.
The best wine advisers compiled and ranked by the Spear’s Research Unit also offer, between them, expertise on specific areas of wine investment, auctioneering, and cellar management, as well as clubs in which to enjoy wine in the company of like-minded individuals and tour operators dedicated to exploring the terroir at ground level.
Best wine advisers: names to know
The calibre of wine advisers is reflected in the high standing of the 25 Spear’s recommended advisers, all of whom have been given a Top Recommended ranking. Among them are new additions including Gregory Swartberg of Cru Wine and Tim Triptree of Christie’s. Visit Spear’s500.com for the complete list of the best wine advisers for high-net-worth clients.
Michael Doerr
Firm: OenoGroup
The Oeno Group’s founder and CEO has been passionate about luxury assets and wine from a very early age. He started his first business buying and selling high-performance horses at just 14 before going on to start and manage three luxury asset companies across the world.
Oeno Group is a personalised wine investment advisory service that adopts a contemporary approach to wine investment, born out of a vision to make the fine wine market accessible to all regardless of their exposure to or experience of the industry.
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Read Michael Doerr’s full profile on Spears500.com
Simon Larkin
Firm: Atlas Fine Wines
Larkin spent 14 years advising HNWs on their fine wine collections before establishing Atlas Fine Wines in 2010. The firm provides private clients seeking expert advice on collecting wines with deep market knowledge and international networks.
The Atlas team offers clients a truly personal service. ‘We’re able to take someone from fairly early days, build their confidence and guide them to gradually understand what they’re looking to achieve,’ Larkin says.
Read Simon Larkin’s full profile on Spears500.com
Patrick O’Connor
Firm: Fine & Rare Wines
Since becoming one of the wine industry’s youngest CEOs at 40, Patrick O’Connor has kept the Fine + Rare online marketplace thriving.
The firm’s platform allows users to buy, sell and store their bottles around the world seamlessly, and its ability to track and scour the marketplace to source and gauge demand is unique. ‘This gives collectors incredible access,’ says O’Connor. ’It’s our job to make sure they can search, while we curate to offer them the wines that they’re looking for.’
Read Patrick O’Connor’s full profile on Spears500.com
Gregory Swartberg
Firm: Cru Wine
Swartberg founded Cru Wines in 2013 to pursue his passion for wines after a career in strategy consultancy. Designed to disrupt this traditional industry, Cru now has offices in Bordeaux and Hong Kong and serves customers in 30 different countries.
Read Gregory Swartberg’s full profile on Spears500.com
Tim Triptree
Firm: Christie’s
As international director of wine & spirits at Christie’s in London, Triptee’s role includes the sourcing of wine and spirits consignments, along with inspections, authentication and valuations. He also advises on collections, on developing client and wine producer relations.
Read Tim Triptree’s full profile on Spears500.com
Methodology
In selecting and ranking wine advisers, the Spear’s Research Unit conducts extensive research of the market, including interviews with well-informed observers, industry insiders and of course the advisers themselves. These take place both face-to-face, and on video and telephone calls. Candidates for inclusion are asked to fill in a form to provide data and a description of their work and client base. In finalising its selections and rankings, the Spear’s Research Unit employs a proprietary methodology that includes a weighted scoring system. This takes into account factors including an adviser’s standing, reputation, client base, recommendations and testimonials, the firm they represent, their level of engagement with the process and certain industry-specific criteria.
Best wine advisers: the complete list
Click on the individual names to be directed to more detailed profiles of each adviser on The Spear’s 500 website. The table is ordered by ranking and then alphabetically by surname.
Find out more
To explore all the Spear’s indices, and to use our find-an-adviser tool to identify the private client adviser who is right for your specific requirements, go to the Spear’s 500 website.
To receive relevant research updates from Spear’s – and thereby give you and your firm the best chance of being included in future Spear’s indices – please register here. If you are an adviser featured in an index and would like to update your profile or provide additional information, please email research@spearswms.com. If you are not featured but would like to be, please fill out our form.
