Being an oenophile may be the technical term for being wine connoisseur. Not all wine connoisseurs have to have large wine collections, and they do not have to consider themselves as being wine investors either. It turns out that oenophiles are getting more and more options that will fulfill their love of wine as collectibles (or as investments).

Wine is of course a key sector within collectibles. It is now also without question that collectibles have become an alternative asset class. Newer options are making it easier and easier to enjoy wine and to invest in wine.

Collectors Dashboard has seen many new opportunities for those who want to collect fine wine in 2021. Three new venues and opportunities stood out for wine collectors with a twist so far in 2021. The Robb Report has just made a new offering, and there are some new developments from Cult Wines and from the RallyRd app.

The Robb Report is very well known by collectors for luxury reviews and offerings. A new 4-bottle case offering is made that is targeting oenophiles who “enjoy being a caretaker of rare vintages as they evolve with time.’ This is its second curated edition of the Robb Report Rare & Fine wine and it was selected by its editors in partnership with Wally’s Wine & Spirits.

The Robb Report’s older vintages are from private libraries of several estates, and one is a special red that was listed as exclusively in this edition. As for scarcity in collectibles, they have only 150 cases available at a price of $600 per case. As these are considered difficult-to-source, and considering an exclusive, this offering seems quite reasonable on the surface considering that these can be aged or consumed now. These are the four wines:

• Château Bélair-Monange 2009 Bordeaux (Library Selection) from the Saint-Émilion region
• Prunotto 2010 Bussia Barolo, Piedmont (Library Selection)
• Maison Joseph Drouhin 2016 Beaune Clos des Mouches Rouge, Premier Cru, Burgundy (Library Selection)
• Memento Mori 2017 Vanitas Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley, CA (Exclusive Selection)

Cult Wines is making the art of investing in wine easier for Americans. The site offers wine investing without the overhead of cellar and concerns of temperatures, and the company founded in London in 2007 has opened offices in North America. Cult Wines has thrived in London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai.

Cult Wines aims to streamline the wine investing process with two services. It offers execution only (starting at about $14,000) and its flagship portfolio management (starting at about $32,000). Their view is that the American market has historically been underserved and the company is using a template that has worked in all of its other markets. Investors get first dibs on purchasing Bordeaux vintages before bottling.

Coinciding with Bordeaux 2020 En Primeur, investors are able to purchase 2020 Bordeaux vintages. The launch of this courtship is meant to show confidence and attract first time investors where auctions and collectors markets have performed well.

The RallyRd app is not new in 2021, but a $100,000-plus offering is now in the works. RallyRd has previewed a share offering #09RBLEROY for one 12-bottle case of 2009 Richebourg, Domaine Leroy. The offering was not available at the time of publishing, but the “current value” was listed as $107,500 (or just $8,958.33 per bottle). The Wine Advocate was quoted in the offering as having projected that this 2009 vintage has an anticipated drinking date from 2019 to 2039.

These are obviously not the only newer ideas for oenophiles in 2021. That said, they are must-see issues for oenophiles.

Unlike many other collectibles, taking physical delivery of fine wine for collecting and investing does bring its own set of challenges. Shipping wine can destroy it if the weather is too hot or too cold. It has to kept in set temperatures for aging and preservation. And knowing when a wine is peaking is paramount for collectors and investors.

Many great wine collections exist in America that are worth tens of thousands to millions of dollars. It has to be hard for a wine connoisseur to see their favorite bottles of wine without wanting to open it up even for a taste. Whether or not you can resist the urge to drink the wine and hold it for investment purposes is going to be up to you.