Updated September 2026. Real indices, base 100 in 2000.
Over a quarter of a century, premium vineyard land has outperformed French residential property, ordinary farmland and the domestic equity index — in real terms, net of inflation. The comparison is instructive, and it is also narrower than it looks.
Twenty-four years, six lines
Real index in 2024, base 100 in 2000:
- Grand cru, Côte-d'Or — ≈355 (2023, the last figure released)
- Côte-d'Or vineyard land, AOP average — 261
- Champagne vineyard land — 181
- French residential property — 172
- Arable land, France — 123
- CAC 40, excluding dividends — 84
Arable land at 123 is barely above inflation over the period. The distance between that line and the vineyard lines is the measure of the appellation premium: it is the classification, not the agricultural use, that carries the value.
Income is thin, and that is the point
Gross rental yield from a farm lease runs at roughly 1.5 % to 2 % a year in Champagne, and 0.8 % to 1.2 % in Côte-d'Or — lower where capital values are higher. An investor comparing these figures with a bond coupon is comparing the wrong things: the return here is carried by capital appreciation, and the rent is a complement, not the case.
What the comparison does not say
Three limits should travel with these figures. The equity line excludes dividends, which understates a real equity return. Vineyard land is illiquid to a degree that has no equivalent in the listed markets: in Champagne, well under one per cent of the vineyard changes hands in a year, and a grand cru parcel may not come to market in a decade. And a hectare is not a share — it carries a farm lease, an operating status, plant health and a production tool, none of which appear in an index.
Not a recommendation
These are published series, restated. They describe what happened to a category of asset over a period. They are not a forecast, not an allocation view, and not advice to buy or to sell.
Full data series (French). The full series, their construction and their reliability ratings are published in Le foncier viticole face aux autres actifs. One series, one reference address, never duplicated.
What this page does not do. It restates published figures and explains how they are built. It values nothing, advises on no transaction, and replaces neither a valuation nor the advice of a qualified professional. VITACEAE issues no estimate on the basis of this page.
How to cite this page
Short form — “Observatoire VITACEAE”, September 2026 edition.
Full form — VITACEAE, Vineyard land as an asset class, Observatoire VITACEAE, September 2026 edition. Source : Le foncier viticole face aux autres actifs, real indices base 100 in 2000. Permanent address : undefined/en/vineyard-market-data/vineyard-land-as-an-asset-class/ (accessed DD/MM/YYYY).
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Reproduction permitted provided the source is cited as “Observatoire VITACEAE”, with a link to this page. — This document is published for economic information purposes. It constitutes neither legal advice, nor a tax analysis, nor a wealth-management recommendation, nor a valuation. VITACEAE TRANSACTIONS SAS, RCS Reims 823 282 637, CPI 5102 2016 000 014 113 (CCI Marne-Ardennes).