How an Engagement Works
Four models of what working with Prestige Vin looks like in practice — the phases, the timeline, what you receive, and what it costs.
Client work is held in confidence, so what follows describes the shape of an engagement rather than any one collection. You should know how the work runs, what you receive, and what it costs before you commit to it.
Model One
The Cellar Audit
Consider a collection of roughly 300 bottles, accumulated over a decade without a running record of what's actually in it. The audit exists to answer, in writing, what is there, what it's worth, and what to drink first.
Brief
A short conversation about the collection — what's known, what isn't, and why the audit is needed now.
On-Site Inventory
Every bottle counted, labeled, and photographed in place, or reviewed virtually from your own records and images.
Condition & Provenance Review
Storage conditions, fill levels, label condition, and purchase history checked against what a clean chain of custody requires.
Valuation & Drinking-Window Map
Current market value assigned bottle by bottle, alongside a map of what's ready now and what should wait.
Written Report & Walkthrough
A bound report delivered and reviewed with you in person or by call — insurer-ready, estate-ready, and yours to keep.
Timeline: two to three weeks, on-site visit to delivered report
- A written valuation report, itemized by bottle, suitable for an insurer or an estate attorney.
- A drinking-window map flagging what's ready now, what's approaching its peak, and what can hold.
- Condition and provenance notes for every bottle reviewed.
- Photographic documentation of the collection as found.
- A private walkthrough of the findings, in person or by call.
From $1,200
Fees cover curation and service. Wines are sourced to your budget and purchased directly from licensed retailers; glassware and rentals, where needed, at cost.
What typically follows: a decision about what to sell, insure, or drink down — and, for collections that keep growing, a standing Cellar Direction retainer so the record never goes stale again.
Model Two
The First Cellar
Consider a professional starting from nothing — no cellar, no collection, a taste for wine but no framework for buying it — with a stated wine budget of $15,000. The engagement turns that budget into a considered collection rather than a scattered set of purchases.
The Conversation
How you drink, how you entertain, and what the room the cellar lives in actually looks like.
The Allocation
A split across drink-now, mid-term, and long-term bottles — built to the budget, not around a template.
The List
A sequenced acquisition list, region by region, with formats and specific bottles named.
The Purchase
You buy directly from the licensed retailers we identify, in your name, at their price.
The Cellar
Delivered, logged, and ready — with a record of what you own and why, from the first bottle.
≈ 40%
Drink now
Approachable bottles for the next twelve to eighteen months — the wines you'll actually open first.
≈ 35%
Mid-term
Three-to-seven-year holds from regions with a track record of rewarding patience.
≈ 25%
Long-term
A smaller allocation to structured, age-worthy bottles — the collection's foundation.
Regions and formats follow the split, not the reverse — a mix of Old World mainstays for structure and value-driven producers for range, in a combination of case commitments and single bottles sized to the budget.
You do — directly, from the licensed retailers we identify, in your own name, at their price. We never take title, custody, or possession of the wine at any stage.
Sourcing fee: 10% on the first $25,000, 5% on everything above. $250 minimum.
| Engagement fee | $2,500 |
| Wine budget (illustrative) | $15,000 |
| Sourcing fee, disclosed | $1,500 |
| Total outlay | $19,000 |
From $2,500
Fees cover curation and service. Wines are sourced to your budget and purchased directly from licensed retailers; glassware and rentals, where needed, at cost.
"A recommendation is only worth trusting if it doesn't line the advisor's pocket."
Model Three
Cellar Direction
Ongoing counsel for a living collection: acquisition strategy, allocation hunting, drinking-window management, records, and gifting on call. Consider a standing Village-tier retainer across a single year — the cadence repeats, quarter after quarter, for as long as the retainer runs.
The Pull List
A quarterly drinking-window list arrives — what's ready, what's peaking, what to hold a season longer.
An Allocation Offer
A release comes available through our sourcing relationships. We assess it against your cellar and taste, and advise yes or no — most often no.
Records Maintained
Every acquisition, gift, and drawdown logged, so your records stay current without you tracking a spreadsheet.
Annual Revaluation
A written update on what the collection is worth today, plus the year's final pull list and any holiday gifting counsel you need.
| Tier | Monthly | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Village | $500 per month | Quarterly drinking-window pull list · Allocation and release alerts, matched to your cellar · Gifting counsel on call · Annual collection review |
| Premier Cru | $1,000 per month | Everything in Village · Standing acquisition strategy and sourcing counsel · Cellar records maintained for you · Semiannual on-site visit (tri-state) or virtual walkthrough |
| Grand Cru | $2,500 per month | Everything in Premier Cru · Anthony as your dedicated advisor · Sourcing fees waived on the first $50,000 acquired each year · Quarterly on-site visits and annual written revaluation · First invitation to private tastings and tables |
Fees cover curation and service. Wines are sourced to your budget and purchased directly from licensed retailers; glassware and rentals, where needed, at cost.
Model Four
The House Account
A standing wine practice for firms: client-entertainment cellar management, quarterly executive tastings, and a year-round gifting desk that absorbs the December surge. Consider a standing account for a mid-sized advisory firm, run across a single corporate year.
The Cellar Assessed
The firm's client-entertainment cellar or stock is reviewed and a standing management plan is set for the year.
First Executive Tasting
A seated tasting for leadership or a client group — sequenced for conversation, scheduled a year in advance.
Second Executive Tasting
A second tasting, often timed to a retreat or an offsite, with December capacity reserved on the calendar ahead of the surge.
The Gifting Surge
Selection, ordering, and delivery for client and referral gifts — recorded, receipted, and tracked, so nothing is a scramble.
From $10,000 per year
Fees cover curation and service. Wines are sourced to your budget and purchased directly from licensed retailers; glassware and rentals, where needed, at cost.
By application — not enrollment
A limited number of firms are taken on each year, so that quarterly tastings and gifting turnaround stay unrushed.
"Discretion is the point. The shape of the work is not a secret."
Frequently Asked Questions
Every fee shown here follows the same disclosure principles we hold ourselves to everywhere. Read our standards.
Discuss Which Model Fits
Tell us what you're working with — a collection, a blank cellar, or a firm's wine practice — and we'll tell you honestly how an engagement would run.
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