Spear’s Review

Alexander Hall worked as an investment banker until a sabbatical spent on his stepfather’s vineyards prompted a move to Bordeaux. He set up Vineyard Intelligence to offer both on- and off-market vineyard property searches across Europe, as well as audit, evaluation and negotiation services, and post-acquisition advice.

Clients purchase vineyards for pleasure and for business reasons, Hall says, with around half of these international buyers who are ‘more often than not, new to the world of owning and operating a vineyard’. He describes vineyard property ownership as a ‘hyper-niche’ investment, and acknowledges that it’s not always simple.

‘There are fantastic lifestyle elements associated with owning and running a vineyard,’ he says. ‘But the bottom line is: see it as a business, and look at things like production costs.’