Wine Costs

Picture this; You're browsing wine in your local store and see a bottle on special from €19.99 down to €10.99, bargain! But have you ever stopped to think of how that wine got there, how much it cost the importer to bring it thousands of miles across land and sea, or how much time, cost and effort was invested into making the wine? Many of us don't realise just how difficult and complex the process is. We also don't realise that a 'cheap' or 'discounted' bottle most likely has very little of the cost dedicated to the liquid itself, which often means low quality or even mass produced.

Did you know that we pay the highest rate of Excise duty in Europe? That's right, a bottle of still wine attracts €3.19 in excise, with a bottle of sparkling at a hefty €6.39. Don't forget the VAT of 23% on top of that. As importers of wine, I wanted to summarise the costs and challenges involved. I believe it's important for every wine drinker to have the whole picture.

In our case, once the stock is paid for, we add transport costs (most of our wines travel over 15 000 km's). Then we pay the excise duty and VAT, followed by an addition of a small mark up (no merchant would survive without a profit margin). We then factor in other costs such as postage and packaging - we use the latest (and expensive) protective packaging to ensure your wines arrive safely - And finally we have the everyday running costs of the store.

The business of wine is a complex one, but we do the hard work so that you don't have to. Please get in touch if you need any tips and we'll happily provide our recommendations to ensure you are buying the best wine to suit your taste.

Our full range of fantastic South African wines can be found Here