Introducing Cellar Circle

We’ve been helping people enjoy fine wine since 1854. But we knew there must be an even better way to build a world-class cellar. So we introduced Cellar Circle.

Cellar Circle is the best way to build a wine portfolio with us. Members work with our Fine Wine Advisors to buy fine wine, whether for investment (no capital gains tax!) or for current and future enjoyment. We can provide solutions for storage, and a wide range of options for selling your portfolio, or we can simply help you choose from our range of incredible wines for your next dinner party. 

In turn, our members receive special benefits - from exclusive allocations of highly sought-after wines, to money-can't-buy experiences.

Join Cellar Circle
WhatsApp our sales team

Member benefits

Build a World-Class Cellar

Personal Fine Wine Advisor

Create a Wine Investment Portfolio

Exclusive Access

Featured Wines

Pricing
In bond
Duty paid
info

Our Guide to Buying Fine Wine

Buying Wine En Primeur

En Primeur is the practice of buying fine wines at an early stage of their lives - after the wines have been made but before they have been fully aged and bottled. Certain wines are in such high demand that often the only chance to secure them is at this en primeur stage, as they will effectively be sold out on release. Also wines can often be found much cheaper at this point than when they are eventually released onto the marketplace.

For us the two major regions for En Primeur are Burgundy and Bordeaux - our Burgundy offer takes place at the start of January whereas Bordeaux chateaux individually release their wines between the months of April and July, making for an extended campaign.

 

Buying Wine In Bond

In bond means that the wine has not yet had duty or VAT paid on it, and is stored in a bonded warehouse.

When customers buy wine in bond and keep the wine in storage, they do not need to pay these taxes until they wish to actually withdraw the wine for consumption.

Therefore if they are planning to resell their wine in bond, it is only the final consumer who will have to pay the duty and VAT.

 

Storing Your Wine

All wines at Lay & Wheeler are stored with our partner Coterie Vaults, who run the most state-of-the-art bonded wine warehouse in the UK.

All wines owned and sold by us and by our customers are stored in this purpose-built facility, where temperature and humidity controls, an expert team of wine professionals and sustainability practices make for the best wine storage solution for collectors.

 

Selling Your Wine

A large number of our customers decide to sell some of their wine collection (usually so they can purchase more wine), and through Lay & Wheeler it couldn’t be easier.

Through our website you can list your wines for sale, with prices dictated by up-to-date market valuations, and customers can purchase these just as easily as buying wines from Lay & Wheeler directly.

We only allow wines with perfect provenance to be resold through us, and our quality control team are experts on assessing the condition and origin of each bottle, to ensure full peace of mind for every buyer.

 

Fine Wine

Fine wine is not a classified term and as with many things wine-related will mean different things to different people. However in general terms we understand fine wine to mean something that has come from a region and a producer renowned for quality and consistency, whether they be a well-known name globally or someone under the radar that our wine buyers have discovered on their travels.

It's a personal thing, but at Lay & Wheeler the idea of a truly fine wine is one that is balanced in its flavour and structure, and one that shows the identity of where it has come from, whether that is Classed Growth Bordeaux or South African Chenin Blanc from the Swartland.