Wine is now the best-performing collectible investment

Fine wine is now the performing collectible of the world's wealthy collectors, out-performing classic cars and fine art, according to a new report.

The Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index, which tracks the price growth in major areas of collectibles, found that the value of fine wines soaring 25% in the last year.

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The surge follows a boom and bust in fine wines following the financial crisis when buying in the Chinese market jumped and then cooled.

Now, the Chinese market is stabilising and remains strong, investment in collectible wines has picked up again.

Wine prices are also being driven by strong economies in Europe, the US, and the rest of Asia.

"After the crisis, the Chinese buyers were buying high-value wines not because they liked them, but because they perceived those wines to be the ones to buy," said Andrew Shirley, who compiled the index report for Knight Frank.

"We saw that bubble pop. Now the Chinese wine buyers are more connoisseurs."

International auction house Sotheby’s, led the global wine market auction last year, with total sales up 22% from 2015.

Its sale of wines from the cellar of US billionaire William Koch fetched US$22mn at auction, and a ten-bottle lot of 1945 Chateau Mouton Rothschild went for US$343,000, exceeding way above its US$120,000 estimate.